Trade Association Warning of "Flood of Cheap Goods" from Asia Due to US Tariffs

The Trade Association is now calling for a temporary ban on Chinese discount retailers Temu, Shein & Co in the EU, and the new Consumer Protection Minister Korinna Schumann (SPÖ) also sees a need for action regarding the cheap deliveries from Asia.

Trade Association Chief Calls for EU Commission to "Act Immediately"

Instead of going to the USA, more and more Asian container ships with low-value goods are now "heading towards Europe," said Trade Association Managing Director Rainer Will on Thursday at a specialist conference of the association. In addition to the particularly high general special tariffs for China, US President Donald Trump has also imposed tariffs of 90 percent on low-value goods from China - a tripling of the previously planned duties for these items, which are mainly purchased through the apps of Temu and Shein. Trump had previously already lifted the duty-free import of packages with a value of up to 800 dollars (around 724 euros). In light of the recent developments in the US/China tariff dispute, the Trade Association Managing Director is calling on the EU Commission to "act immediately." Temu and Shein are "allegedly repeatedly violating applicable EU law." The EU has not yet "activated the enforcement instruments of the EU," criticized representative Will.

Consumer Protection Minister: Temu, Shein & Co "Incredible Problem"

For Social and Health Minister Korinna Schumann (SPÖ), the cheap goods deliveries from Temu, Shein & Co are also "an incredible problem." This cannot be "solved at the Austrian level," but only together as the European Union, said Schumann on Thursday afternoon at the trade colloquium of the Trade Association. "This is one of the great dangers for our trade." It must also be ensured that the products sold through Temu and Shein are not health-threatening, said the Consumer Protection Minister. Interspar Managing Director Johannes Holzleitner criticized that the regulatory framework conditions for stationary retailers and for online retailers like Shein, Temu, and Amazon are not comparable. "This is unfair competition." By changing the customs boundaries and package fees, "more competitive equality can be achieved very quickly," said Holzleitner.

Billions of Packages Duty-Free to Europe

For goods from non-EU countries like Asia, ordered via the internet, there is currently a duty-free limit of 150 euros. The Trade Association is pushing to lower the duty-free limit to 0 euros. If the EU does not achieve this quickly enough, then Austria must introduce a processing fee of 150 euros for packages from Shein and other online retailers from China, demanded Will. The public sector in Austria would lose around 1 billion euros in VAT due to incorrect customs declarations - stating a low value of goods. Austrian trade representatives have long been demanding more customs package controls, more customs employees, and better equipment for customs authorities. According to the Trade Association, around 4.6 billion packages were delivered duty-free to Europe in 2024. Two-thirds of these packages were incorrectly declared to avoid customs fees and save import VAT. "The damage to Austrian trade is estimated at around 4.5 billion euros," estimates trade representative Will.

(APA/Red)

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