How Trumps tariffs could leave your Shein order stuck at customs

Shein’s fast fashions may not be so fast anymore under new customs restrictions from the Trump administration – and that could be an even bigger problem for the Chinese company than tariffs, The Post has learned.President Trump is expected to slap Beijing with a 10% tariff, which kicks in Tuesday, but his executive orders issued Saturday also closed a trade loophole used by Shein and fellow Chinese e-commerce giant Temu to expedite shipments. The so-called de minimis exemption allows packages worth less than $800 to be shipped into the US duty free.Now, the heavily discounted apparel and other low-cost items will need to go through US customs, and the massive intake could more than double the shipping times, experts told The Post.“At the end of the day there will be delays and extra cost and the $2 dress could wind up being $4 and take an extra week to get to you,” said James Thompson, e-commerce expert at Equity Value Advisors.

“If that creates too much friction, consumers may want to buy something from Amazon for the easier, faster shipment time.”Shares in Temu parent PDD Holdings plunged 5% on Monday.Without the exemption, customs officials will need to randomly search an additional 1 million packages per day – the amount of items that Shein and Temu send to the US daily, according to The Wall Street Journal.The Chinese sellers also will need to fill out tedious forms declaring the item they are sending, a dress for example, and the material it’s made from, since cotton and silk have different tax rates — causing a massive a backlog.“This is an economic earthquake and US Amazon sellers are rejoicing,”  Jon Elder, an e-commerce consultant, wrote on LinkedIn.The Chinese fast-fashion companies have taken advantage of the circa-1930 international trade rule, initially passed so that US travelers could bring home souvenirs hassle-free, to aggressively ramp up their exports of low-value items.Their exports have soared to $66 billion in 2023, f...