Trump May Revoke Tariff Exemptions on Cheap China Imports

The Trump administration is considering revoking tariff exemptions for low-value shipments from China, known as "de minimis," as part of Wednesday's tariff announcement, a source familiar with the plans said.

The decision would reinstate President Donald Trump's February decision to end duty-free entry for cheap Chinese goods entering the U.S. The decision had been paused because of logistical issues complicating the inspection of millions of the low-value shipments.

"They figured it out," the source said. "De minimis is being stripped from China."

Trump is expected to impose sweeping new tariffs on global trading partners later on Wednesday, in a move that would escalate a trade war, increase prices and upend a decades-old trade order.

Trump first took aim at cheap shipments from China in his February 1 executive order, imposing a 10% tariff on Chinese goods and ending the trade rule that allows merchandise with a value totaling less than $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free and with minimal inspections.

The number of shipments entering this way has exploded in recent years, reaching nearly 1.4 billion packages last year. More than 90% of all packages coming into the U.S. now enter via de minimis, and of those, about 60% come from China, led by direct-to-consumer retailers such as Temu and Shein.

Trump campaigned on a promise to punish China for the role it has played in the synthetic opioid crisis that has killed more than 450,000 Americans in the last decade. Chinese chemical makers are the top suppliers of raw materials purchased by Mexico's cartels to produce the deadly drug, U.S. anti-narcotics officials say.

A Reuters investigation last year showed how traffickers often route these chemicals through the United States by exploiting the de minimis rule. China has repeatedly denied culpability.

Trump's order affecting de minimis parcels was paused on February 7 because there had not been sufficient time to prepare, with packages stacking up at ports of entry.

Details on how major parcel carriers, e-commerce platforms, the U.S. Postal Service and U.S. Customs and Border Protection would now be expected to implement the order were not immediately available.