Temu, which is owned by the Chinese e-commerce company PDD Holdings, and Shein, which is now based in Singapore, said in separate notices that their operating expenses have gone up “due to recent changes in global trade rules and tariffs.”
Both companies said they would be making “price adjustments” starting April 25, although neither provided details about the size of the increases.
Since launching in the United States, Shein and Temu have given Western retailers a run for their money by offering products at ultra-low prices, coupled with avalanches of digital or influencer advertising.
The 145 percent tariff Trump slapped on most products made in China, coupled with his decision to end a customs exemption that allows goods worth less than US$800 to come into the US duty-free, has dented the business models of the two platforms.
E-commerce companies have been the biggest users of the widely-used exemption.
Trump signed an executive order this month to eliminate the “de minimis provision” for goods from China starting May 2, when they will be subject to the 145 percent import tax.
As many as four million low-value parcels – most of them originating from China – arrive in the US every day under the soon-to-be cancelled provision.
US politicians, law enforcement agencies and business groups lobbied to remove the long-standing exemption, describing it as a trade loophole that gave inexpensive Chinese goods an advantage.
Shein sells inexpensive clothes, cosmetics and accessories, primarily targeting young women through partnerships with social media influencers. Temu, which promoted its goods through online ads, sells a wider array of products, including household items, humourous gifts and small electronics. (AP)
