EC eyes 'handling charge' replacing de minimis in bid to tackle cheap imports
European regulators are looking at ways to tackle the surging flow of goods entering the ...
HD: DIY RE-PRICINGZIM: A RISING TIDE LIFTS ALL BOATSTSLA: CHINA THREATDAC: KEY REMARKSDAC: SURGING GM: SUPPLY CHAIN WOESMAERSK: ROTTERDAM TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF OPERATIONSATSG: OWNERSHIP UPDATERXO: COYOTE FILLIP GONEGM: SUPPLY CHAIN HITBA: CUT THE FAT ON THE BONER: STEADY YIELDMAERSK: SELL-SIDE UPDATESDAC: TRADING UPDATE OUT SOONTSLA: FEEL THE PAIN IN CHINAWMT: GUESS WHATXPO: SURGINGAMZN: LOOKING FORWARD
HD: DIY RE-PRICINGZIM: A RISING TIDE LIFTS ALL BOATSTSLA: CHINA THREATDAC: KEY REMARKSDAC: SURGING GM: SUPPLY CHAIN WOESMAERSK: ROTTERDAM TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF OPERATIONSATSG: OWNERSHIP UPDATERXO: COYOTE FILLIP GONEGM: SUPPLY CHAIN HITBA: CUT THE FAT ON THE BONER: STEADY YIELDMAERSK: SELL-SIDE UPDATESDAC: TRADING UPDATE OUT SOONTSLA: FEEL THE PAIN IN CHINAWMT: GUESS WHATXPO: SURGINGAMZN: LOOKING FORWARD
REVISED, 16:23, London: USPS has back-pedalled, and is once again accepting US-bound parcels from China, in what appears to be a rapidly shifting situation with reports of other operators purportedly having suspended their US-bound services.
USPS announced yesterday (4 February) that it would no longer be accepting inbound parcels from China and Hong, before updating customers this morning (5 February) with a note stating, “the Postal Service will continue accepting all international inbound mail and packages from China and Hong Kong Posts. The USPS and Customs and Border Protection are working closely together to implement an efficient collection mechanism for the new China tariffs to ensure the least disruption to package delivery.”
Subsequent news reports have since stated that other operators have suspended their US-bound parcel services from China and Hong, in a rapidly evolving situation following President Trump’s suspension of the exemption for de minimis goods and mounting concern over the pressure this could put on US Customs & Border Protection.
Responding to USPS’ notice of suspension on LinkedIn, Jagath Narayan, CEO of online, ecommerce fulfilment platform Odoro, linked the two events and said: “The de minimis ban on inbound parcels from China is now kicking in.
“This has a huge impact on the dropship model used by several Shopify stores, and also on the direct-from-China fulfilment model used by Temu and Shein.”
The Trump administration halted access to Section 321 customs de minimis entry processes for shipments under $800 in a weekend spree of executive orders, including imposing 25% tariffs on both Canada and Mexico – both subsequently suspended – and 10% tariffs on China).
Senior analyst at Gartner Brian Whitlock warned that the sudden withdrawal of section 321 for all three countries would hit China hardest. However, Mexico and Canada would be least prepared and supply chains from these two countries could be put under pressure, he added.
However, Mr Trump’s u-turn on his two neighbours also suspended his plan to remove their access to de minimis, providing some breathing space, which will be particularly welcome for Mexico, given its increasing presence in US ecommerce.
“The real question is can US Customs handle the volumes we can expect? Particularly, given the immediacy with which this change was made,” Mr Whitlock told The Loadstar.
“I suspect the Chinese ecommerce players would have been prepared for this to happen at some stage, considering there are several bills going through Congress intending to strip Chinese access to de minimis, so even if they were caught offguard, they’ll be ready.”
Certainly the numbers are astonishing, the CBP processed around four million de minimis shipments a day in 2023, equating to 1bn over the year, valued at $50bn. This was a huge jump from the 2.8m daily shipments in 2022.
Of that 1bn parcels, 88% arrived by air, via international mail, express courier services including DHL, FedEx, and UPS, as well as within the cargo holds of passenger flights.
Mr Whitlock said it was clear that the CBP may have prepared for the changes, “but given we are talking about a potential 2.5m additional shipments a day which will require formal entry, I suspect we’ll find out very quickly”.
Asked whether he foresaw goods being waved through customs to avoid the potential for mass congestion, Mr Whitlock said: “Absolutely not.”
Comment on this article