US President Donald Trump has suspended the planned abolition of the tariff exemption for low-value shipments from China for the time being.
Originally, the de minimis rule, which exempts shipments under 800 dollars from customs duties and extensive customs controls, was to be abolished.
The White House justified this with China’s lack of control over the smuggling of fentanyl into the USA.
However, the threatened abolition led to considerable disruption in international shipments. Logistics experts warned that the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) was not adequately prepared to handle additional inspections and customs processing for the millions of packages being shipped daily. As a result, there were backlogs in customs clearance. At John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, in particular, over one million packages were detained.
In view of the challenges, the White House has therefore decided to temporarily maintain the de minimis rule until efficient systems for collecting customs duties have been implemented. In addition, the additional 10 percent levy on all Chinese goods that has been in force since February 4 remains in place.
In response, China has announced “retaliatory tariffs” of 10 to 15% on US products such as liquefied natural gas, coal, crude oil and agricultural machinery. (rup)
