Temu ditches Chinese imports in U.S. to avoid Trump’s tariffs

This photo illustration shows the logo of Chinese e-commerce company Temu displayed on a mobile phone in front of a screen bearing a website page of the company, in Brussels on Nov. 4, 2024. Photo by NICOLAS TUCAT/AFP via Getty Images

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Temu is abandoning the model centered around cheap Chinese imports that catapulted it to success in the U.S., aiming to sell only goods from local merchants to American consumers for the foreseeable future.

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PDD Holdings Inc.’s online retail phenom, which much like Shein Group Ltd. burst onto the scene just a few years ago with cut-price items from dresses to kitchen towels, intends to shift to what it calls a “local fulfillment” model. The company is actively recruiting U.S. merchants and will sell only their locally based merchandise, Temu said in an emailed statement. That’s expected to allow the Chinese-owned company to sidestep tariffs and it said it intends to keep prices for Americans unchanged.

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Temu’s shift comes as retailers from Shein to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. grapple not just with soaring import taxes, but also the scrapping of the so-called de minimis tariff exemption for small parcels. Before the move, e-commerce giants like Temu and Shein saw prices soar in the U.S. U.S. President Donald Trump enacted levies to try and force Beijing to seek a trade deal that slashes the bilateral trade deficit, and has said he expects China to “eat” the tariffs.

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“The move is designed to help local merchants reach more customers and grow their businesses,” Temu said. It’s also “part of Temu’s ongoing adjustments to improve service levels.”

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As of last week, the PDD unit had appeared to pass on nearly all of Donald Trump’s new import taxes to U.S. consumers, by adding a clearly labeled surcharge for buyers at checkout. Fast-fashion giant Shein also raised U.S. prices of its products, with hikes of more than 300 per cent for certain items.

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Temu had asked Chinese factories to ship their goods in bulk to American warehouses back in February in what it calls a “half-custody” framework, where it only manages the online marketplace. However, as inventory in the U.S. depletes over time, prices could eventually go up when factories replenish stocks if tariffs on Chinese imports remain elevated at 145 per cent.

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Major U.S. retailers haven’t yet raised the prices of goods on shelves. But they’re caught in a bind, as Chinese suppliers refuse to absorb tariffs and uncertainty mounts over how long the extra levies will be in place.

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Companies like Walmart Inc. and Target Corp. could also come under political pressure to absorb some — if not all — of the cost increases, which could help cushion the direct impact on shoppers.

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The example of Amazon.com Inc. — which said on Tuesday that it wouldn’t display the cost of U.S. tariffs on products, after the White House slammed the reported move and Trump complained to Jeff Bezos — underscores the difficult position U.S. consumer retailers are in. If they don’t pass on cost increases, profit margins will narrow and become a drag on their stock price.

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