雨果网的朋友们
观察员
2024-06-15 22:21
Encircling and suppressing cross-border e-commerce in China? Sakata disagrees
Friends of Hugo Net, observers
Hugo Selection
2024-06-15 22:21
Within a year, it seems that the world is imposing restrictions on low-priced imported goods.
This article is reproduced from the official account: BrandsFactory
Recently, Temu officially launched its Brazil website and attempted to attract local consumers with up to 90% shopping discounts and free door-to-door delivery services.
But the latest news shows that both the Brazilian House of Representatives and Senate have approved the termination of tax exemption policies for international purchase orders with amounts not exceeding $50, and have decided to impose a 20% import tax on such goods. If the law ultimately takes effect, it may have an impact on Shopee, Shein, AliExpress, and Temu, who have recently joined the Brazilian market.
Starting from 2024, Malaysia's low value tax has officially come into effect. According to regulations, all products sold to Malaysia through e-commerce platforms with a price below RM500 must pay a 10% low price commodity tax. This has also led to an increase in product prices on e-commerce platforms such as Shopee.
Recently, a series of customs rectification measures by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) were like a sudden storm, casting a shadow over the development of Chinese cross-border e-commerce in the United States.
Within a year, it seems that the world is imposing restrictions on low-priced imported goods, which is not good news for China's cross-border e-commerce industry.
Nevertheless, the pace of China's cross-border e-commerce platforms going global is still accelerating. On May 27th, AliExpress announced the signing of football superstar David Beckham as the global spokesperson. In the highly anticipated 2024 European Championship, AliExpress became the official partner, while Alibaba International Station became the official B2B e-commerce partner. And Temu has opened sites in 70 countries worldwide, including many countries and regions such as Asia, Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, and Oceania. (Temu semi hosting is hot! Live docking with Temu official, please follow the Hugo Cross border Global Platform Resource Conference on June 26-28, click here to register!)
The country is also supporting the development of cross-border e-commerce industry. On June 11th, the Ministry of Commerce and nine other departments issued opinions on expanding cross-border e-commerce exports and promoting the construction of overseas warehouses. Encourage areas with conditions to focus on local industries, establish industrial belt display and selection centers, cooperate with cross-border e-commerce platforms, and establish "online zones" for industrial belts.
01
"Small exemptions" drive the development of cross-border e-commerce
The storm of US customs consolidation this time has affected multiple US customs clearance companies, forcing them to suspend their "minor exemption" (T86) clearance business, including even large international freight agents like Seko Logistics.
According to reports, Seko Logistics processes millions of "small exemption" packages every month. However, currently Seko Logistics has resumed customs clearance operations.
The "Small Exemption" policy stipulates that packages delivered to individual buyers through direct mail can enter the United States duty-free as long as their value is less than $800. The entry inspection is also relatively relaxed, which brings great convenience to Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers to conduct business in the US market.
How important is "small exemptions" for the development of China's cross-border e-commerce industry?
Since Alibaba International Station went global in 2000, postal packages with obvious price advantages have quickly become the preferred logistics and distribution model for cross-border e-commerce sellers. Postal small packages are very suitable for the delivery of lighter and smaller goods. They not only have high logistics cost-effectiveness, but also have convenient customs clearance and low inspection rates. By making good use of relevant policies, tariffs can be exempted.
The $800 "small exemption" policy originated from the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act signed by Obama in the spring of 2015, which significantly increased the original "minimum clause" limit from $200 to $800. This leap undoubtedly opened a broader door for cross-border e-commerce.
At that time, the biggest beneficiaries of the "small exemption" policy were actually Amazon and American buyers. Around 2015, as Amazon vigorously introduced third-party sellers, countless cross-border small packages flooded into the United States from all over the world, with a large portion of their products coming from Chinese factories.
Grace, a cross-border merchant from Shenzhen, told the brand factory that all the phone cases she sells are shipped to overseas consumers in the form of cross-border small bags. "Our products are very light, and it is most suitable to transport them in small bags. There is no need to stock up in overseas warehouses, it is very convenient."
With the development of cross-border e-commerce industry, more and more small packages are being exported, so the dedicated small package logistics business launched for popular countries has also grown. According to the data disclosed in the 2023 Xiaosheng Ranking, small package dedicated lines account for as much as 45% of the revenue of cross-border logistics enterprises, almost occupying half of the market share of cross-border e-commerce logistics.
The rapid development of Temu and SHEIN in the US market has brought the "small exemption" policy to the extreme. Their categories are mainly clothing and light small items, with a unit price far below the threshold of $800, so small package direct mail is the preferred logistics method.
In a survey conducted by a congressional committee last year, Temu and SHEIN sellers together accounted for nearly half of the minimum packages entering the United States from China.
This has also led to a continuous increase in the number of "small exemption" packages entering the United States. During the 183 day period from October 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024, US Customs processed a total of 705 million small packages that entered the US market through the "small exemption" policy. In terms of conversion, in the 2024 fiscal year, the average daily processing of small packages by US customs was 3.85 million, while this data was approximately 2.88 million in the 2023 fiscal year and approximately 1 million in 2018.
02
On the occasion of "multiple supervision", 9 departments issued documents supporting going abroad
Not only in the US market, but also since May, Chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms seem to be facing multiple regulations.
Firstly, Vietnam officially announced plans to cancel the tax exemption policy for small imported goods, and will impose a certain percentage of value-added tax on all imported goods priced below 2 million Vietnamese dong, which is approximately 78 US dollars.
Then there is South Korea. On May 13th, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced that the South Korean government has signed an agreement with AliExpress and Temu to promote product safety.
This review is closely related to the rapid development of AliExpress and Temu in South Korea. According to data from the South Korean Bureau of Statistics, in 2023, the total amount of goods purchased by Koreans from Chinese e-commerce platforms, including AliExpress and Temu, increased by a staggering 121% year-on-year, reaching 3.3 trillion Korean won (approximately 2.48 billion US dollars), accounting for nearly half of their total overseas e-commerce purchases. As of March 2024, the number of users of AliExpress and Temu in South Korea has surged to 8.87 million and 8.29 million respectively, while the local e-commerce platform 11st, which was established in 2008, only has 7.4 million users.
Subsequently, on May 31st, the European Commission announced that Temu was officially designated as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) due to its user base exceeding 45 million. The European Commission explicitly stated in a statement that as a super large online platform, Temu must fully comply with the provisions of the Digital Services Act within four months of receiving notification, i.e. by the end of September 2024.
Since entering the EU market in April 2023, Temu has achieved rapid expansion among 27 EU countries including Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Spain. As of March 31, 2024, Temu has an average monthly active user base of approximately 75 million in the local area. Therefore, Temu is listed as a super large online platform. Previously, Chinese platforms such as TikTok, AliExpress, and Shein were all recognized as super large online platforms.
At the same time, 17 member state organizations including France, Germany, and Spain have also accused Temu of violating a series of requirements under the DSA Act, including failure to provide traceability information for traders, manipulative business practices, and opaque product recommendation algorithms.
On the other hand, in Brazil, the South American region, the House of Representatives passed a new proposal at the end of May, bringing new challenges to overseas e-commerce platforms such as Shopee and AliExpress. This proposal decides to impose a 20% tariff on goods worth less than $50, marking a significant adjustment in Brazil's current tax exemption policy. And the latest news is that the Brazilian Senate has also passed the proposal.
This policy change will not only affect the operating costs of cross-border e-commerce platforms, but may also have an impact on the shopping choices of Brazilian consumers, as the increased tariffs may increase the final selling price of goods, thereby affecting consumer purchasing power and willingness to purchase.
The latest tariff policy adjustment comes from South Africa. It is reported that starting from July 1, 2024, South Africa will impose a 45% import tariff and a 15% value-added tax on foreign e-commerce clothing retailers such as Shein and Temu. This is because local clothing retailers have previously accused Shein and Temu of affecting the market with their low-priced imported goods.
Although Chinese cross-border e-commerce merchants face multiple regulations overseas, the Chinese government injected a shot in the arm into the cross-border e-commerce industry on June 11th.
According to reports, the Ministry of Commerce and 9 other departments have issued opinions on expanding cross-border e-commerce exports and promoting the construction of overseas warehouses. Guide local governments to rely on cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones, cross-border e-commerce industrial parks, advantageous industrial clusters, and foreign trade transformation and upgrading bases to cultivate a benchmark for the development of the "cross-border e-commerce empowering industrial belt" model. Encourage areas with conditions to focus on local industries, establish industrial belt display and selection centers, cooperate with cross-border e-commerce platforms, and establish "online zones" for industrial belts. The key points include:
Support the introduction of new technologies such as digital humans in accordance with laws and regulations, expand sales channels through online live streaming and other means, and drive the export of more advantageous products. Encourage local governments to support traditional foreign trade enterprises in developing cross-border e-commerce based on their unique advantages, and establish a marketing service system that integrates online and offline, as well as domestic and overseas linkage. Support cross-border e-commerce enterprises to "borrow and expand overseas". Support cross-border e-commerce platform, export, payment, logistics, overseas warehouse and other enterprises to participate in China Import and Export Commodities Fair (Canton Fair), Global Digital Trade Expo and other key exhibitions. Support the improvement of existing local cross-border e-commerce exhibitions based on market-oriented principles, and hold overseas special promotion and docking activities for key products and markets. Encourage eligible regions to organize enterprises to participate in overseas exhibitions, and provide more display and docking platforms for cross-border e-commerce enterprises.
03
"Turning", Made in China Embracing the World
In fact, the adjustment of the "small exemption" policy has already existed.
In July 2021, the European Union abolished the value-added tax exemption policy for cross-border goods and services. Since then, the EU's tax dividend period has ended.
In the past, due to EU regulations that small packages with a value below 22 euros were not subject to taxes, tax-free low-priced goods naturally had a price advantage. However, with policy adjustments, all goods will have to pay value-added tax, which will result in the vast majority of cross-border sellers targeting the European market facing about a 20% increase in operating costs.
The EU policy adjustment has brought pain to Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers between 2021 and 2022. However, after experiencing the adjustment, cross-border merchants who are still deeply cultivating the European market, Arrow, bluntly stated, "Tax compliance is inevitable. In the long run, it will purify the market environment and reduce vicious competition."
Arrow's experience tells us that the landscape of cross-border e-commerce is changing. Once the small package direct shipping business model becomes difficult to implement, overseas warehouses and local stores will be put on the agenda.
From a platform perspective, in 2021, Amazon chose to comply with EU regulations by directly withholding and paying VAT. Faced with the adjustment of "small exemption" policies in multiple countries, China's cross-border e-commerce platforms are attempting to reduce the pressure on small package logistics by enhancing the strategic position of the "semi custody" model.
Several sellers have reported to the brand factory that after several US customs clearance companies were suspended from their "minor exemption" (T86) customs clearance business, the official Temu Full Custody Buyer Group has already issued a notice of "temporary suspension of first order". "In fact, Temu's core team has been betting on semi custodial business since the beginning of this year."
Woody, who has been engaged in cross-border freight forwarding business for 5 years, said that last year AliExpress, Temu, and Shein were all striving for full custody, and domestic warehousing and cross-border small package transportation capabilities were already very tight. In the peak season, there were more problems. "Last Christmas season, Temu's package volume surged, and there were many problems with final delivery, so this year, both AliExpress and Temu are doing semi custody."
The brand factory learned that Temu's semi hosting model mainly targets sellers who have overseas warehouses, have already stocked up overseas, and have the ability to ship locally. This can be seen as an important step taken by Chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Temu in the face of competition with Amazon.
In the wave of globalization, the development of China's cross-border e-commerce is like a giant ship sailing through the wind and waves, moving forward bravely. Behind it lies the strong manufacturing capabilities of China's tens of millions of industrial belt factories, which provide a solid foundation and continuous driving force for the vigorous development of cross-border e-commerce.
From electronic products to household goods, from fashionable clothing to mechanical equipment, Made in China has entered the lives of global consumers with its excellent quality and competitiveness, accompanying the giant ship of cross-border e-commerce.
It can be certain that the development of cross-border e-commerce is not hindered by foreign suppression. Faced with challenges and pressures from the external environment, China's cross-border e-commerce has shown strong vitality and unlimited potential. Cross border e-commerce platforms and merchants are constantly adapting to changes with flexible strategies and innovative models, steadily advancing in the global market.
At the same time, the supportive policies of the Chinese government and the active guidance of industry organizations have provided a favorable external environment for the development of cross-border e-commerce in China. The introduction of a series of measures, from tax incentives to financial support, from market access to intellectual property protection, has created favorable conditions for the growth of China's cross-border e-commerce.
In the tide of the digital economy, China's cross-border e-commerce is embracing the world with an open attitude.
(Cover from: Tuchong Creative)
(Source: Friends of Hugo Net)
The above content only represents the author's own viewpoint and does not represent Hugo's cross-border stance! If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Hugo Cross border within 30 days after the publication of the work.
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本文经授权转载自公众号：品牌工厂BrandsFactory
日前，Temu正式上线了巴西站，并试图通过最高90%的购物折扣和免费送货到门服务吸引当地消费者。
但最新消息显示，巴西众议院和参议院都批准了终止对金额不超过50美元的国际采购订单的免税政策，并决定对这类商品征收20%的进口税。如果法令最终生效，对Shopee、Shein、速卖通和最新加入巴西市场的Temu可能都会造成影响。
2024年伊始，马来西亚的低价值税就已正式生效。根据规定，所有通过电商平台销售到马来的商品，售价低于500令吉的都必须缴纳10%的低价商品税。这也使得Shopee等电商平台上的商品价格出现了上涨。
而前段时间，美国海关与边境保护局（CBP）的一系列海关整顿措施，就如同突如其来的风暴，给中国跨境电商在美国的发展蒙上了一层阴影。
一年之间，似乎全球都在对低价进口商品做出限制，对中国跨境电商行业来说不算是个好消息。
尽管如此，中国跨境电商平台出海的脚步仍在加速。5月27日，速卖通宣布签约足球巨星大卫·贝克汉姆为全球代言人。在万众瞩目的2024欧洲杯赛事中，速卖通成为了官方合作伙伴，阿里国际站则是官方B2B电商合作伙伴。而Temu已在全球开通了70个国家站点，囊括了亚洲、欧洲、北美、拉美、非洲以及大洋洲等众多国家和地区。 （Temu半托管正热！现场对接Temu官方，请关注6月26-28日雨果跨境全球平台资源大会，点此报名！）
国家也在支持跨境电商行业的发展。就在6月11日，商务部等9部门发布关于拓展跨境电商出口推进海外仓建设的意见。鼓励有条件的地方聚焦本地产业，建设产业带展示选品中心，与跨境电商平台开展合作，设立产业带“线上专区”。
01
“小额豁免”带动跨境电商发展
这次美国海关的整顿风暴波及了多家美国清关公司，迫使它们暂停“小额豁免”（T86）清关业务，其中甚至包括了Seko Logistics这样的大型国际货运代理商。
据报道，Seko Logistics每月处理数百万件“小额豁免”包裹。不过目前Seko Logistics已经恢复了清关业务。
“小额豁免”政策规定，凡是通过直邮交付给个人买家的包裹，只要价值低于800美元就可以免税进入美国。入境审查也相对宽松，这给中国跨境电商卖家在美国市场开展业务，带来了非常大的便利。
对于中国跨境电商行业的发展来说，“小额豁免”有多重要？
从2000年阿里国际站出海开始，价格优势明显的邮政小包就迅速成为了跨境电商卖家的首选物流配送模式。邮政小包非常适用于较轻、体积较小的商品配送，不仅物流性价比高，且清关便利、查验率低，利用好相关政策还能免除关税。
而800美元“小额豁免”政策，源自2015年春天奥巴马签署的《贸易便利化和贸易执法法案》，将原先的“最低限度条款”限额从200美元大幅提升至800美元，这一跳跃，无疑为跨境电商打开了一扇更广阔的大门。
那时“小额豁免”政策的最大受益者其实是亚马逊和美国买家。2015年前后正值亚马逊大力引入第三方卖家，无数跨境小包如同潮水般从世界各地涌向美国，其中很大一部分商品来自中国工厂。
来自深圳的跨境商家Grace告诉品牌工厂，她所售卖的手机壳全部通过跨境小包的形式运送到海外消费者手中，“我们的产品很轻，用小包运输是最合适的，也不需要在海外仓囤货，很方便。”
随着跨境电商行业的发展，出口的小包越来越多，因此针对于热门国家推出的专线小包物流业务也随之增长。根据2023年晓生排行榜披露的数据，小包专线占跨境物流企业业态营收比重高达45%，几乎占据了跨境电商物流市场份额的半壁江山。
而Temu和SHEIN在美国市场的迅猛发展，更是将“小额豁免”政策发挥到了极致。它们的品类以服装和轻小件为主，客单价远低于800美金的门槛，因此小包直邮是首选物流方式。
美国国会委员会在去年的一项调查中发现，Temu和SHEIN卖家加起来占了从中国进入美国的最低限度包裹的近一半。
这也使得进入美国的“小额豁免”包裹的数量持续攀升。在2023年10月1日到2024年3月31日的183天里，美国海关共处理了7.05亿件通过“小额豁免”政策进入美国市场的小包裹。换算下来，在2024财年美国海关平均每日要处理385万件小包，而这一数据，在2023财年约为288万件，在2018年时大概是100万件左右。
02
“多重监管”之际，9部门发文支持出海
不止美国市场，自5月起，中国跨境电商平台似乎就面临着“多重监管”。
先是越南正式宣布计划取消小额进口商品的免税政策，将对所有售价低于200万越南盾的进口商品征收一定比例的增值税，也就是大概78美元的商品。
然后是韩国。5月13日，韩国公平贸易委员会（KFTC）表示，韩国政府与速卖通、Temu签署了一项协议，以促进产品安全。
这一审查与速卖通、Temu在韩国的飞奔有着莫大的关系。韩国统计局数据显示，2023年，韩国人从包括全球速卖通和Temu在内的中国电商平台购买的商品总额，同比增长了惊人的121%，达到了3.3万亿韩元（约合24.8亿美元），占其海外电商购买总额的近一半。截至2024年3月，速卖通和Temu在韩国的用户数量已分别激增至887万和829万，而2008年就已成立的韩国本土电商平台11st却仅有740万用户。
随后，在5月31日，欧盟委员会宣布，Temu因其用户数量超过4500万，正式被指定为超大型在线平台（VLOP）。欧盟委员会在一份声明中明确指出，Temu作为超大型在线平台，在收到通知后的四个月内，即2024年9月底之前，必须全面遵守《数字服务法》的规定。
自2023年4月进入欧盟市场以来，Temu在德国、法国、意大利、荷兰、新西兰、西班牙等27个欧盟国家间实现了快速扩张。截至2024年3月31日，Temu在当地的月均活跃用户约为7500万。因此Temu被列为了超大型在线平台，此前，TikTok、速卖通、Shein等中国平台均被认定为超大型在线平台。
与此同时，法国、德国和西班牙等17个成员国组织也控诉Temu违反DSA法案的一系列要求，包括未提供交易商的追溯信息、存在操纵性商业行为以及产品推荐算法不透明等。
另一边，在南美地区的巴西，其众议院在5月底通过了一项新提案，给Shopee、速卖通等海外电商平台带来了新的挑战。这项提案决定对价值50美元以下的商品征收20%的关税，这标志着巴西对当前免税政策的重大调整。而最新消息，巴西参议院也通过了该提案。
这一政策变动不仅会影响跨境电商平台的运营成本，也可能对巴西消费者的购物选择产生影响，因为增加的关税可能会提高商品的最终售价，从而影响消费者的购买力和购买意愿。
最新的关税政策调整则来自南非。据悉，2024年7月1日起，南非将对Shein和Temu等外来的电商服装零售商征收45%的进口关税和15%增值税，原因是此前当地服装零售商指责Shein和Temu的低价进口货物影响市场。
尽管中国跨境电商商家在海外面临着多重监管，但中国政府在6月11日给跨境电商行业注入了一剂强心针。
据报道，商务部等9部门发布了关于拓展跨境电商出口推进海外仓建设的意见。指导地方依托跨境电商综合试验区、跨境电商产业园区、优势产业集群和外贸转型升级基地等，培育“跨境电商赋能产业带”模式发展标杆。鼓励有条件的地方聚焦本地产业，建设产业带展示选品中心，与跨境电商平台开展合作，设立产业带“线上专区”。其中的要点有：
支持依法合规引入数字人等新技术，通过网络直播等方式拓展销售渠道，带动更多优势产品出口。鼓励地方立足特色优势支持传统外贸企业发展跨境电商，建立线上线下融合、境内境外联动的营销服务体系。支持跨境电商企业“借展出海”。支持跨境电商平台、出口、支付、物流、海外仓等企业参加中国进出口商品交易会（广交会）、全球数字贸易博览会等重点展会。支持按市场化原则提升现有地方性跨境电商展会办展水平，针对重点产品、重点市场举办海外专场推介、对接活动。鼓励有条件的地方组织企业赴境外参展，为跨境电商企业提供更多展示对接平台。
03
“转向”，中国制造拥抱世界
事实上，“小额豁免”政策的调整，早已有之。
在2021年7月，欧盟就取消了跨境商品和服务增值税免税政策。自那时起，欧盟的税务“红利期”就已经结束了。
在过去，由于欧盟规定价值低于22欧元的小包直邮商品不需要缴纳税费，免税的低价商品自然而然地具有价格优势。然而，随着政策调整，所有的货物都得缴纳增值税，将使得绝大多数瞄准欧洲市场的跨境卖家面临约20%的运营成本提升。
欧盟政策调整，在2021年、2022年间给中国跨境电商卖家们带来了阵痛，但经历过调整目前还在深耕欧洲市场的跨境商家Arron直言，“税务合规是必然的，长期来看会净化市场环境，减少恶性竞争。”
Arron的经验告诉我们，跨境电商的格局正在发生改变，一旦小包直发的业务模式难以走通，海外仓、本土店就会提上日程。
从平台层面来看，2021年时的亚马逊选择直接通过代扣代缴VAT增值税来遵守欧盟的规定。而面对多国“小额豁免”政策的调整，中国的跨境电商平台则试图通过提升“半托管”模式的战略地位，以期减少小包物流的压力。
多位卖家向品牌工厂反应，在多家美国清关公司被暂停“小额豁免”（T86）清关业务后，Temu全托管买手群内官方就已经发布了“首单暂时暂停”的通知，“其实今年年初Temu的核心团队就已经押宝在半托管业务上了。”
5年来一直从事跨境货代业务的Woody表示，去年速卖通、Temu、Shein都在发力全托管，国内仓储以及跨境小包运输能力就已经很紧张了，到了旺季问题更多，“在去年圣诞季的时候，Temu包裹量激增，最后交付出现了非常多的问题，所以在今年不管是速卖通还是Temu，都在做半托管。”
品牌工厂了解到，Temu的半托管模式主要瞄准那些拥有海外仓、已在海外备货等具备本土发货能力的卖家。这可以看做是Temu等中国跨境电商平台在面对与亚马逊的竞争时，迈出的重要一步。
在全球化的浪潮中，中国跨境电商的发展犹如一艘乘风破浪的巨轮，勇往直前。它的背后，是中国千万产业带工厂的强大制造能力，这一深厚的底蕴，为跨境电商的蓬勃发展提供了坚实的基础和源源不断的动力。
从电子产品到家居用品，从时尚服饰到机械设备，中国制造以其卓越的品质和竞争力，伴随着跨境电商的巨轮走进了全球消费者的生活。
可以肯定的是，跨境电商的发展，不是外国打压就不成长了。面对外部环境的挑战和压力，中国跨境电商展现出了顽强的生命力和无限的潜力。跨境电商平台和商家们以灵活的策略、创新的模式，不断适应变化，在全球市场中稳步前行。
同时，中国政府的支持政策和行业组织的积极引导，为中国跨境电商的发展提供了良好的外部环境。从税收优惠到资金扶持，从市场准入到知识产权保护，一系列措施的出台，为中国跨境电商的成长创造了有利条件。
在数字经济的大潮中，中国跨境电商正以开放的姿态，拥抱世界。
（封面来自：图虫创意）
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