new York
Cnn
–
Buyers have obtained a little relief this week from a giant rate on right -of -law deductible goods from China. But the rates that remain are always ready to derail the purchasing habits of millions of Americans who buy electronic commerce sites at ultra-basic prices like Shein and Temu.
The Trump administration has reduced its rate on “minimis” plans, or goods of goods worth $ 800 or less, coming from China by 120% to 54% and reduced the rate from 145% to 30% for package transporters. A flat option at $ 100 will not increase to $ 200 per postal article on June 1, as planned previously, according to a decree published Monday and which comes into force after midnight Wednesday.
The change is emblematic of the state of the American-Chinese trade war. The relationship improves, but it must still go before it returns to the pre-January levels. On Wednesday, China withdrew its overall prices on American products at 10% for 90 days, while American samples from the vast majority of Chinese products fell to 30% for this period. The American prices arise for the samples which were already in place before US President Donald Trump begins his second term.
Monday’s executive decree facilitates the price of 120% on minimis postal packages. The new rate of 54% only applies to shipments managed by postal services such as USPS. UPS, FEDEX and other express mail companies will rather face the reference rate on Chinese products, that the United States has lowered to 30%, still paralyzing for many companies and consumers.
In the end, the weight of prices will fall to American consumers, in particular low -income income that counts on relatively cheap products from China. Americans can now expect longer waiting times and higher prices, commercial experts told CNN.
“This is a better scenario than the alternative, but in the end, it is a huge disturbance for basic household items, such as clothing, etc., which are shipped using minimus exemption,” said Clark Packard, research researcher on commercial policy at Cato Institute, a libertarian reflection group, CNN.
The exemption from minimis had enabled Chinese electronic commerce giants like Shein and Temu to flood the American market with cheap articles, on which millions of Americans were reluctant.
But after President Donald Trump first adopted punishing prices on Chinese imports, chaos followed: USPS briefly ceased to deliver China packages and delivery times increased. After the expiration of the exemption two weeks ago, customers told CNN that they had trouble continuing to buy in Shein and Temu after the platforms increased their prices.
A few hours after Minmis’ exemption at the beginning of May, TEMU announced that it was revising its shipping model, sending all American sales via sellers based in the United States, adding that its “price for American consumers remains unchanged”.
CNN has contacted TEMU on the updates of its shipping policies since the announcement of the new price.
The rate remains higher on cheap imports compared to the overall price on Chinese products because the Trump administration said it wanted to suppress illicit substances like fentanyl which would be billed via these packages. Packard has also noted growing skepticism on minimis exemption, which criticism argues that US companies harm American businesses and expose Americans to false or “dangerous” goods.
The roller coasters have confused sender and consumers. Even with the newly reduced rate, the impact on these Gargantusennesian electronic commerce companies remains unclear.
Commerce experts say that Chinese electronic commerce will probably store products in the United States during this period of de-escalation, especially since companies are starting to prepare for the busy holiday season.
Temu and Shein have already started to Build their American warehouse portfolios to reduce shipping times. Shein has started to store goods and Bulk fertilizer in American warehouses last year, and Bloomberg reported in February that Temu had started to revise his Chinese supply chain, asking suppliers’ factories to ship loose items to American warehouses.
Some American buyers from TEMU complained this month that the items were already out of stock or that many items were no longer available.
Low -income households will suffer the most Higher prices on Chinese electronic commerce sites. About 48% of the minimis packages sent to the poorest postal codes in the United States, while 22% was delivered to the richest, according to February research from the UCLA and Yale economists.
“It will harm people who fight a little more than average Americans,” said Packard.
