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China-founded e-commerce sites Temu and Shein say they plan to raise prices for U.S. customers starting next week, a ripple effect from President Donald Trump’s attempts to correct the trade imbalance between the world’s two largest economies by imposing a sky-high tariff on goods shipped from China.Temu, which is owned by the Chinese e-commerce company PDD Holdings, and Shein, which is now based in Singapore, said in separate but nearly identical notices that their operating expenses have gone up “due to recent changes in global trade rules and tariffs.”Both companies said they would be making “price adjustments” starting April 25, although neither provided details about the size of the increases. It was unclear why the two rivals posted almost identical statements on their shopping sites.Since launching in the United States, Shein and Temu have given Western retailers a run for their money by offering products at ultralow prices, coupled with avalanches of digital or influencer advertising.The 145% tariff Trump slapped on most products made in China, coupled with his decision to end a customs exemption that allows goods worth less than $800 to come into the U.S. duty-free, has dented the business models of the two platforms.E-commerce companies have been the biggest users of the widely used exemption. Trump signed an executive order this month to eliminate the “de minimis provision” for goods from China and Hong Kong starting May 2, when they will be subject to the 145% import tax.As many as four million low-value parcelsmost of them originating in Chinaarrive in the U.S. every day under the soon-to-be canceled provision.U.S. politicians, law enforcement agencies, and business groups lobbied to remove the long-standing exemption, describing it as a trade loophole that gave inexpensive Chinese goods an advantage and served as a portal for illicit drugs and counterfeits to enter the country.Shein sells inexpensive clothes, cosmetics, and accessories, primarily targeting young women through partnerships with social media influencers. Temu, which promoted its goods through online ads, sells a wider array of products, including household items, humorous gifts, and small electronics.Last year the companies were among the largest advertising spenders on social media platforms, but they’ve both slashed that spending in recent weeks, according to data analytics provider Sensor Tower. That could be bad news for the platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snap, X, and TikTok that rely on advertising.In November, American e-commerce giant Amazon launched a low-cost online storefront featuring electronics, apparel, and other products priced at under $20. Many of the electronics, apparel, and other products on the storefront Wednesday resembled the types of items typically found on Shein and Temu.In their customer notices about the pending price increases, the companies encouraged customers to keep shopping in the days ahead.“We’ve stocked up and stand ready to make sure your orders arrive smoothly during this time,” Temu’s statement said. “Were doing everything we can to keep prices low and minimize the impact on you.” Mae Anderson, AP Business Writer
Category:
E-Commerce
An aggressive U.S. tariff policy will trigger a significant slowdown in the U.S. economy this year and next, with the median probability of recession in the next 12 months approaching 50%, according to economists polled by Reuters. A sudden 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs on trading partners imposed by President Donald Trump hasn’t done much to improve the U.S. outlook given a trade war with its biggest trading partner, China, is escalating and damaging business sentiment. Most forecasters, like U.S. consumers in recent months, have significantly raised their inflation expectations. They have also slashed their growth outlook. Median inflation forecasts in the April 1417 Reuters poll have surged since last month, potentially restricting the Federal Reserve from delivering more than two interest rate cuts between now and year-end. The probability of a U.S. recession over the coming year has surged to 45%, the highest since December 2023, from 25% last month. “Sentiment is incredibly weak right now and that points to households being very nervous about spending . . . Prices, jobs, and wealth are all moving against the consumer and that is a pretty toxic combination for consumer spending growth going forward,” said James Knightley, chief international economist at ING. “That’s the real issue for U.S. growth that raises the recession risk . . . The lack of clarity on the trading environment faced by U.S. companies makes them naturally more wary about putting money to work in the U.S. economy.” All 45 economists who answered an additional question said tariffs had negatively impacted business sentiment, with almost half saying they were very negative. The economy, which started the year on a solid footing of strong growth, consumer spending and hiring, is expected to grow just 1.4% in 2025, a sharp downgrade from 2.2% predicted last month. An overwhelming majority of common contributors, 46 of 50, have lowered their 2025 growth outlook by around 80 basis points on average just in the past month. Economists as a group have not downgraded their forecasts by that much in such a short span of time since July 2022. Next year, the economy is forecast to expand 1.5%, well down from 2.0% expected in a March poll. “Damage has likely already been done by uncertainty about tariffs, and that uncertainty stands to reduce growth, increase inflation, and amplify tail risks on an ongoing basis,” said James Egelhof, chief U.S. economist at BNP Paribas. Similar worries have also dented confidence in U.S. assets with many strategists in separate Reuters surveys recently saying they were concerned about the safe-haven status of U.S. Treasuries and the dollar. INFLATION EXPECTATIONS SURGE Economists have raised their outlook for all inflation measures surveyedconsumer prices, core CPI, personal consumption expenditure, and core PCEand all were expected to remain well above the Fed’s 2% target until at least 2027. Most regular contributors have revised their CPI forecasts for this year from the March survey by nearly 60 basis points on average, the biggest monthly change since March 2023. U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday warned Trump’s tariff policies risked pushing inflation and employment further from the central bank’s goals and said the Fed was “well positioned to wait for greater clarity.” A more than 60% majority of economists, 62 of 101, predicted the Fed would hold its federal funds rate at 4.25%4.50% until at least July. There was no clear consensus on where the rate would be by end-2025 but about two-thirds of economists predicted it at 3.75%4.00% or higher. Just over a third, 35, are expecting three or more reductions this year, in line with what interest rate futures are pricing. Kevin Khang, a senior economist at Vanguard said “it’s the ubiquitous presence of tariffs that makes the likelihood of upward price pressure an extremely likely scenario. And that’s why we think price stability will be marginally more prioritised over full employment.” Unemployment rate forecast changes in the poll were modest compared with the large downgrades to growth and upgrades to inflation. The jobless rate, currently 4.2%, was expected to average 4.4% and 4.6% this year and next, respectively. Indradip Ghosh, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
Whats in your office starter pack? La Colombe cold brew and a New Yorker subscription? Bose headphones and Brooks Brothers? Thanks to the latest ChatGPT trend making the rounds, you can now find out. By uploading a few photos and using a specific prompt, OpenAIs GPT-4o image generator will spit out a personalized action figure or Barbie box in your likenesscomplete with miniature accessories and sealed in plastic. In the past week, the trend has started popping up across TikTok, X, andwhere trends go to dieFacebook and LinkedIn. The Strategic Data & AI Consultant Starter Pack Now in limited-edition blister packaging, one LinkedIn user wrote alongside their post. Unleash Your Inner Leader: The ‘Passion-Driven AI Impact’ Starter Pack! wrote another. A marketing agency in Texas called it a cute way to re-introduce yourself to your audience, re-introduce your employees, or even make an action figure, (or a few action figures,) of what your ideal target audience/consumer looks like. Brands like Starbucks and NYX Cosmetics have also jumped on the trend. Even Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene posted her own AI-generated figure, complete with Bible and gavel. The Congresswoman MTG Starter Kit If I was a doll! I love all my accessories, including my Bible and gavel for DOGE Committee chair! pic.twitter.com/2fEWYH1Ubt— Marjorie Taylor Greene (@mtgreenee) April 10, 2025 As with other recent AI trends, reception has been mixed. People on LinkedIn turning themselves into cheap, plastic, replaceable products is the least surprising thing, one X user posted. Can we please stop mass using AI to create social media trends (for example, the action figure trend happening rn)? another wrote. People on LinkedIn turning themselves into cheap, plastic, replaceable products is the least surprising thing.— akreon (@_akreon_) April 10, 2025 The counter-hashtag #StarterPackNoAI quickly began circulating among creatives pushing back against what they see as the erosion of artistic labor. The starter pack trend follows closely on the heels of the controversial Studio Ghibli AI trend, which sparked debate over whether OpenAI was unfairly using the work of artists, including Studio Ghiblis Hayao Miyazaki. Environmental and cultural concerns aside, some users simply hate to see the TikTokification of LinkedIn. “Went over to LinkedIn for a break from tariff world is ending doomscrolling. Got a feed full of ‘I made myself an action figure, another X user complained. Take me back doomscrollers.”
Category:
E-Commerce
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