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The US Postal Service said it would suspend the distribution of packets from China while Chinese logistics groups announced new new tariffs, as President Donald Trump’s unexpected decision to set low -priced goods hit exporters in the economy of the second largest in the world.
The US postal service gave no reason for its decision to suspend the packages temporarily, which would also cover Hong Kong, saying it would still accept parcels and flat letters.
Customs agents now need to check and clean the packages sent from China after Trump’s decision to remove the “de minimis” rules that exclude shipments under $ 800 from tasks.
Changes will strongly increase the cost of 4MN parcels a day arriving in the US under the exclusion of De Minimis, about 30 percent of which come from Chinese e -commerce groups Temu and Shein. With the interruption of flights, new tariffs threaten to hit the developing international trade of China at a time when Beijing is relying on exports to compensate poor demand in its domestic economy.
Exporters said Chinese logistics companies were still working, but some have started demanding 30 percent front holding fees to cover increased taxes on de minimis shipments.
“Logistics companies. . . We have gradually informed us to charge an additional 30-35 percent of the value of our goods to oppose tariffs, as well as an additional RMB20 ($ 2.75) for the package, ”said Liu, an I-Commerce crossbar in Changsa, in the province Central Hunan of China.
Liu said he sold circuit boards in Amazon, eBay and other sites, with the US, calculating 20 percent of his annual sales. “This (increased tariffs) comes directly from our pockets.”
Chinese logistics company CNE Express on Wednesday issued a notice to clients, saying this would keep the equivalent of a “comprehensive fee” in 30 percent of the order of a shipment plus an RMB20 treatment fee for package.
“The final amount set will be determined by the current tariffs set by customs and protecting the US borders,” she said, saying that any changes would return to the client.
Joe Biden’s administration last year flags changes in the De minisis regime, which the US blames to allow a drug flood and other illegal goods to enter the country, while Trump has long threatened the highest tariffs.
But the speed of implementing Trump’s additional tariffs for China caught a lot of surprise. The President’s Executive Order Authorizing an additional 10 percent fee and the removal of De Minimis was signed on Saturday and entered into force on Tuesday.
Not only will the parcels first qualify for De Minimis now have to pay 10 percent, but they will also be hit with existing fees.
Trump and China President Xi Jinping is expected to hold a call in the coming days, though the US leader said Tuesday he was in a hurry to talk to his Chinese counterpart.
“What is needed now is not the unilateral increase in tariffs, but the dialogue,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday.
Some exporters said they had stopped receiving and sending orders as they expected clarity over the changes.
A person acquainted with the issue in Temu said he had mostly canceled his bookings for goods flights from Hong Kong starting on Friday.
“He created a little chaos. . . Because as we know, De minimis is essentially dead now and many of the airlines that actually fly to the US. . have canceled the flights, ”the person said.
Gongsun, a seller from China’s southern Guangdong province selling through Amazon, said DHL, UPS and FedEx were still taking parcels, but he had suspended all shipments to the US anyway.
“We don’t know what will come next,” he said.
Gary Lau, director of the Business Development at the Freeight Forwarder-the speed of air cargo at the speed of transport, believed that Chinese exporters could increase the tariff because their goods were still much cheaper than other countries’.
Wen Biao, general manager at the Shenzhen -based Technology Logistics, said Chinese sellers already had thin margins and would be forced to raise their sales prices.
“Customers (at US) are likely to have to pay more by moving forward,” he said.
DHL said it was working with clients and suppliers to “navigate” changes in “limit the negative impact on US importers and consumers.” UPS and FedEx did not immediately respond to comment requests.
Reporting by William Langley to Guangzhou, Chan Ho-Him in Hong Kong, Wenjie Ding, Tina Hu and Joe Leahy in Beijing
