The United States has moved to raise tariffs and strengthen taxes on goods arriving from China. The Biden administration announced on Friday that it will implement measures aimed at curbing the flood of products sent by mail that enter the U.S. without duties. Until now, shipments to individuals valued under 800 dollars could slip across the border with minimal oversight. Chinese brands such as Shein and Temu have found themselves in the crosshairs. In parallel, a list of new duties on Chinese imports from sectors deemed strategic, including semiconductors and even electric vehicles, will be taxed at 100%. The new duties also include a 25% levy on electric vehicle batteries and a 50% duty on solar panels and semiconductors, with these measures set to take effect on September 27. For semiconductors, the 50% tariff will apply starting January 1, 2025. (Source: U.S. government policy communication and trade briefing, confirmed by subsequent official announcements.)
The U.S. push against Chinese imports exemplifies a broader shift in international trade, a pattern aimed at curbing Chinese dominance and the globalization model of large corporations. Europe is not insulated from these pressures either, as industry and commerce voices complain about the gradual desertion of local markets in favor of large platforms like Amazon, Aliexpress, Shein, and Temu. Tariff barriers and special taxes have become central in these debates over traditional trade practices. (Source: international trade analyses and policy summaries.)
Over the past years, the prohibition on micro-sales has been a lever to restrict Chinese firms. The fiscal change already took hold in Spain and Europe after investigations revealed widespread fraud in shipments from China. The United States now signals a shift toward taxing low-price imports. The proposed trade rule includes a requirement for new disclosure of information for small packages to help U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents identify potentially illicit or unsafe products, such as chemical precursors that can be used to produce deadly fentanyl. The fentanyl origin has strong ties to China and, to a lesser extent, Central America. (Source: U.S. trade policy notices and enforcement briefings.)
The exemption for low-value imports has been part of the U.S. trade framework since the 1930s to facilitate travel and small-scale commerce, but the threshold rose from 200 to 800 dollars in 2015 to support small businesses and even sellers on online marketplaces such as eBay. Packages under the threshold can enter tax-free and with reduced border scrutiny if sent to private residences. The volume of such no-tax shipments exceeded a billion last year, up from about 140 million a decade earlier, according to White House officials, who attributed most of the growth to Chinese e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu. Much of this uncontrolled import volume has originated from those same platforms. (Source: government economic briefings and press summaries.)
The same day, the Biden administration also announced substantial U.S. tariff increases on Chinese imports valued at roughly 18 billion dollars, including 100% duties on electric vehicles, 50% on chips and solar cells, and 25% on lithium batteries, steel, and aluminum. It is widely understood that these fiscal measures come ahead of an approaching presidential election with expectations of a tightly contested race. (Source: official tariff announcements and political risk analyses.)