On Monday, the United States and China made a joint statement announcing a new stage in the trade war that temporarily pauses the tariffs the two nations imposed on each other earlier this year. For the next 90 days, China will ease duties on US imports from 125% to 10%. Over the same timeframe, the US will decrease tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%. Excluded from this deal, however, are Chinese shipments worth less than $800, which will be taxed at a rate of 120%, or a flat rate of $100 per postal item. Starting on June 1st, that $100 fee will double to $200.
The joint statement came after officials from both countries met in Geneva over the weekend. Markets, which have experienced heightened volatility since President Trump’s “Liberation Day,” surged on Monday morning as the news broke.
Last month, President Trump announced a wide range of new tariffs on global imports, including an 84% duty on Chinese imports, which subsequently rose to 145%. He also closed the “de minimis” loophole, which previously exempted shipments from China valued at less than $800. President Trump claimed that he was closing the loophole to help combat the US’s synthetic opioid crisis. In a fact sheet issued by the White House, the Trump admin claimed that “many” Chinese-based shippers took advantage of the de minimis exemption to “hide illicit substances, including synthetic opioids, in low-value packages.”
Despite the Trump administration’s emphasis on synthetic opioids, much of the public conversation around the ending of this exemption has been about cheap sneakers, memory foam pillows, and drones sold by Chinese e-commerce giants like Shein and Temu.
Both companies benefited greatly from the de minimis exemption and said that they planned to raise prices in light of the change. In separate but identical statements, Shein and Temu said that, “Due to recent changes in global trade rules and tariffs, our operating expenses have gone up. To keep offering the products you love without compromising on quality, we will be making price adjustments starting April 25, 2025.”
In early May, however, Temu seemed to change course. Fashion Dive reported that Temu would address tariffs by transitioning to a local distribution model, hiring suppliers in the US. While that strategy helps the company circumvent Trump’s tariffs, it puts Temu in direct competition with Amazon and Walmart in the US. Last year, Amazon seemed to take notice of Temu and Shein’s growing popularity in the US by launching Amazon Haul, its own discount platform. Late last month, President Donald Trump called Amazon’s Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos over a report that Amazon Haul would display import charges on its site. While the idea was discussed internally, Amazon said in a statement to NBC News that “it was never approved and not going to happen.”
In March, American retailer Forever21, a fast fashion stalwart, filed for bankruptcy for a second time. In a court filing, Forever21 said it was “materially and negatively impacted” by Shein and Temu’s use of the de minimis exception, and blamed them for “undercutting” Forever21’s business.
While it remains to be seen who the winners and losers will be in Trump’s remade trade landscape, it’s hard not to hold out hope that American consumers might consider reevaluating their endless appetite for more and cheaper stuff.
Read the full article here
