Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN/AP) - After initially announcing a ban on all inbound packages from China and Hong Kong on Tuesday, the United States Postal Service ended up reversing course on that deicision on Wednesday.
The post office announced Tuesday it would no longer accept parcels from the China and Hong Kong after the U.S. imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods and ended the “de minimis” customs exemption that allowed small value parcels to enter the country without paying tax. This exemption allowed shoppers and importers to avoid duties on packages worth below $800.
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While the Postal Service gave no reason for its course reversal Wednesday, it said it would work with Customs and Border Protection to implement a collection process for the new China tariffs to avoid delivery disruptions.
The ban had the potential to create massive disruptions for online shopping platforms like Shein and Temu, popular with younger shoppers in the U.S. for cheap clothing and other products, usually shipped directly from China. Cheap, direct postal service helps these companies keep costs low.
The suspension by the Postal Service would have likely have created delays in shipments, and potentially higher prices for the companies that rely on rock-bottom pricing for huge sales.
Under the new tariffs imposed by Trump on Chinese imports, analysts say consumers are likely to see price hikes and potential delays in shipments from companies like Shein and Temu.
Mark Andol, owner of the Made in America Store and General Welding and Fabricating, feels it's about time the country has acted on Chinese imports with such tariffs. Since opening the Made in America Store nearly 15 years ago, the mission has been to increase American manufacturing for future generations.
"I always said, 'If you want to grow America, tax or put fees on the imports.' We have to do this for five years," said Andol in an interview with WBEN. "I believe in 50/50 fair trade, but America's been taken advantage of for a long time. I almost have 15,000 100% products that are made in America in our store in Elma, our flagship store, but we have nothing that plugs in or takes a battery. That's a problem, so I am all for if you don't like tariffs, buy American, buy local, support the country you live in."
Andol strongly feels these tariffs on Chinese imports will level the playing field, from a manufacturing standpoint.
"China, a lot of times, it's an inferior product. They don't follow our quality standards. They're using child labor, things that we don't believe in. So when you buy made in China, I say put it back, because you're actually buying things and supporting things I know most people don't agree with," Andol said.
Andol also believes America has lost its balance, where there's not much that's actually made in the United States. With the Made in America Store supporting more than 500 privately-owned American businesses, Andol says it's time to help these American businesses.
"I want to see the tariff money, though, used to support our American companies, help American manufacturers, and also, we've got to work on our education system. Bring back metal shop, wood shop in schools, industrial arts can't be a bad word. We have to train skilled trade workers, because you can't grow our country without having workers," he said. "I absolutely believe we need the tariffs, level the playing field, and get our country healthy again in the manufacturing sector."
Andol further feels that tariffs on imports from China and other similar countries will go a long way towards helping grow the middle class again, and making more products in line with the companies already in America.
"We want to be able to pay fair, good wages, have people have good income, have disposable income so that they can grow in that middle class, which has been hit so hard, that blue collar worker area," Andol explained. "You make tariffs on China, it raises the cost of the products they're selling us. We have only 10-plus steel mills in the United States anymore. We should have hundreds of steel mills. So it'll cause people to look at not only buying American, but building in America. So I do believe it'll cause people to make change, difficult at first, but it'll make the necessary change that we need to grow this country."
Chinese exports of low-value packages soared to $66 billion in 2023, up from $5.3 billion in 2018, according to report released last week by the Congressional Research Service. In the U.S., Temu, which is owned by China’s PDD Holdings, and Shein comprise about 17% of the discount market for fast fashion, toys and other consumer goods, the report said.
Shein and Temu did not immediately comment on the USPS policy changes. On its website, Temu says it also works with private shipping companies such as FedEx and UPS. Shein notes customers can return their packages through USPS and FedEx.
In general, the U.S. imported about $427 billion worth of goods from China in 2023, the most recent year with complete data, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Consumer electronics, including cellphones, computers and other tech accessories, make up the biggest import categories.