USPS suspends some inbound packages from China, Hong Kong

USPS suspends some inbound packages from China, Hong Kong

The U.S. Postal Service mentioned Tuesday it’s briefly suspending all inbound packages from China and Hong Kong Posts.

The change is efficient instantly and can stay “till additional discover,” based on an alert posted to the company’s web site. Letters and huge envelopes, known as “flats,” despatched from China and Hong Kong gained’t be impacted, the USPS mentioned.

The announcement comes after President Donald Trump on Saturday signed government orders imposing tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada. Trump on Monday agreed to carry off on imposing 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days, however the extra 10% tax on items from China stays.

A provision within the orders eliminates a well-liked commerce loophole, generally known as “de minimis,” which permits exporters to ship packages price lower than $800 into the U.S. obligation free.

The de minimis provision has been a crucial software for Chinese language e-commerce corporations, together with Shein and PDD Holdings’ Temu, as they give the impression of being to develop their presence within the U.S. by providing rock-bottom costs on every thing from garments and furnishings to electronics and residential decor.

The U.S. processed greater than 1.3 billion de minimis shipments in 2024, based on knowledge from the U.S. Customs and Border Safety company. A 2023 report from the U.S. Home’s Choose Committee on the Chinese language Communist Celebration discovered that Temu and Shein are “seemingly accountable” for greater than 30% of all packages shipped to the U.S. underneath the availability, and “seemingly practically half” of all de minimis shipments originating from China.

China Submit and Hong Kong Submit are government-operated postal companies. It’s unclear if the suspension applies to package deal shipments from China and Hong Kong despatched by way of non-public mail carriers. In response to a request for clarification, a USPS spokesperson pointed CNBC to the company’s unique announcement.

Cross-border e-commerce firms depend on USPS for about 31% of last-mile deliveries, mentioned Chris Pereira, president and CEO of consulting agency iMpact. In addition they use quite a lot of delivery suppliers together with DHL, FedEx and UPS, in addition to smaller carriers, he mentioned.

USPS has “historically been an economical choice, notably for small sellers in China,” and the suspension might result in elevated prices for sellers and better costs for U.S. customers, Pereira added.

Lawmakers have argued that de minimis imports give Chinese language firms an unfair benefit by permitting them to bypass tariffs. Commerce officers have additionally mentioned that de minimis packages are “topic to minimal documentation and inspection.”

Commerce organizations and advocacy teams have pushed Trump to curb de minimis shipments as a result of they argue it has allowed illicit medication, corresponding to fentanyl, to enter the USA by means of the mail.

If topic to tariffs, it’s unclear whether or not Temu, Shein and different Chinese language e-commerce platforms will have the ability to maintain dramatic development within the U.S.

Temu and Shein have beforehand mentioned their enterprise fashions don’t depend on de minimis. Shein and Temu have opened distribution facilities within the U.S., permitting sellers in China to ship items to the U.S. and retailer them in native warehouses.

The development of opening U.S. warehouses for home distribution took off final 12 months as main e-commerce firms sought to hedge towards additional commerce restrictions, mentioned Wen Biao, normal supervisor of the Shenzhen-based logistics firm Qianhe Know-how Logistics.

Biao mentioned his firm’s warehouse in Los Angeles noticed “explosive” demand, based on a CNBC translation of Wen’s Mandarin-language remarks.

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