The US has tripled planned duties on low-value packages arriving from China, in a major blow to fast-growing ecommerce platforms Shein and Temu.
The White House announced late on Tuesday that it would increase duties to 90 per cent of the parcel’s value or a $75 flat fee that would rise to $150. The duty comes in on May 2, and the flat-fee increase will take effect after June 1.
US President Donald Trump had signed an executive order last week ending a loophole that allowed Chinese goods under the “de minimis” threshold of $800 to arrive duty-free. Instead, there would be a duty of 30 per cent of their value levied or $25 per item, increasing to $50 after June 1.