Starting today, it now costs 49 cents to mail a letter across the street. Yet I can order an item off EBay for a $1 and get it shipped from China to my front door with free shipping. It has to cost the USA post office more than they receive to get it to me.
With the new Global economic policies coming, can this continue?
I’d like to know too. Anybody have insider info?
It may be past due for the international rates to be reassessed. The rates are set by the Universal Postal Union, comprising 192 countries, that works to set international postal prices. The Department of State handles the negotiations for the U.S. The USPS loses about a dollar on each ePacket from China to the USA.
More worried about possible VAT tax than the shipping.
Artificially inexpensive international shipping (along with domestic parcel post here in the U.S.) is akin to witnessing a game of musical chairs played out on a fast sinking ship.
MtnDon said it all with his last comment above (throw in our legacy pension boondoggles and the story pretty much ends there).
Based on the fact that China has been designated as the primary consumer goods manufacturer for the planet, I would say it will continue for the foreseeable future.
Hey, our biggest trade deficit is with China. Sure, shipping may remain free, but what happens when China is TAXED to ship across our NEW borders? They may not want to give free shipping anymore, or they’ll raise the price of the goods to compensate.
We can bet on one thing for sure, it isn’t gonna get any cheaper.
I wouldn’t mind an increase in shipping rates from China. That way, maybe we would be forced to spend our money domestically. Faster shipping and our money stays domestic. Win-win in my book. This may not be the popular opinion and I’m fine with that. We need to level the playing field somehow. China is taking us to task and laughing all the way to the bank.
Hey, welcome to the club! 
here its 20% flat to everything, no exeptions
The wifey is an int accountant and she corresponds with ppl/companies all over the world, she mentioned ” the US VAT thing” a month ago, since they talk about it its just a matter of time if you ask me
I am subscribed just because I want to see if this thread make it to page 3 without breaking the no politics rule. lol
I do see prices of things from China increasing over the coming years, how I have no idea. I am not against this if it brings money back into the US and the increases are still reasonable enough that is something is better from china it is still worth ordering it.
Here in canada if I order anything from the US or other countries there is a huge amount of import tax, and it sucks.
Weeks after getting the package you get the letter in the mail “you owe us $100 etc etc etc”
Trust me, you guys don’t want this.
Personally I would prefer the shipping prices simply increase to account for the “tax” that way you know up front what it will cost. Plus the USPS loosing money on any delivery is silly and means that the rest of use have to make up for that loss in other places.
Some places do that, but other places make you take care of that yourself with surprise costs on delivery.
My understanding of trade is that China will not be taxed to send us stuff. Import taxes are paid on the recipients end. This brings back memories of decades ago when I lived in Canada and bought small parts from the USA. I’d get a notice in the mail to go to the post office. There I would pay the import taxes and receive the package. Read the fine print on the Chinese sellers/shippers sites and they clearly state they have no responsibility to even know what taxes or duties may be imposed by the buyers country. Shipping costs really have nothing to do with the taxes or duties.
And even though I like to receive “free” shipping I do not think the delivery service should be subsidized by government.
Yeh, LOL…either way 6/6…… Uncle Sam get’s his cut
Ya I would much rather pau the cost up front. Then have customs send me a bill. And if customs had to try and do that for every package it would slow things much much further then they are now. Unless they went by the outside the package value amount. Kinda like when GB had free us battery shipping it was always chargers or accessories, professional sample, gift and always under $20
[quote=MtnDon]
…that has certainly been the dirty little secret driving much of this ‘free’ trade benefitting both sides while at the same time screwing succeeding generation(s) who never will.
As offered before, it was wrong and we all knew about it/didn’t give a rip as it obviously benefitted all of us directly (which has become the mantra of my generation and all older for just as long as I can remember).
What puzzles me (now) is:
How do I tell some young kid (now) with infinitely less purchasing power due to OUR piss poor management/debt issues/devalued dollar to “only buy American”…when WE have saved who knows how much over the years buying cheap crap that didn’t NEED to be made expensively or last forever?
Hello! :-)
Maybe this thread should be renamed to “Will free shipping to the USA from China continue?”
I often take a peek at my Aliexpress wishlist and, in the latter days, I've observed an increase in shipping costs to my country. Namely with regards to low value items, which now carry a ≈€0.51 surplus along with a reference to my country's postal company (Correos Economy). Interesting.
Cheers ^:)
The Communist China gubbment subsidizes shipping for Chinese companies.
Imagine if Uncle Sam paid all your costs to ship items overseas.
We may be about to enter a period of less emphasis on globalism so my WAG would be that yes…we are going to see some increase in costs of goods from China one way or the other……
Which for the US would probably be a good thing even though it might hurt to have to pay 30-40% more for Chinese goods in the short term.
In the long term, it would probably stimulate growth in American made products.
It’s the UN, not the Chinese government, according to this article @fortune.com
or this one @the washington post
The whole international postal started decades ago before there was any small package commerce, let alone e-commerce. I believe it started as a way to ensure people could communicate with distant relatives by air mail. I remember writing to the folks back home in the 70’s on onion skin paper to keep the weight down. The system has simply not been kept up-to-date with the changes brought about by e-commerce. Charging what the shipping costs really are when the package reaches the western countries would put a crimp in our hobby, but in reality that should be addressed. Don’t you think?