TOKYO – Japan Post will suspend shipping of some small packages to the United States due to fresh tariffs imposed by the US government, in a sign of how President Donald Trump’s levies may impact smaller businesses and individuals. 

The mail service will stop accepting parcels that include consumer goods for sale or gifts worth over US$100 (S$128) from Aug 27, after the

US revoked its tariff exemption

on lower-value packages from across the world, according to a statement published on its website.

“It is not clear what the appropriate processes for shipping companies and postal services are under the new guidelines, making operation extremely difficult. We will therefore be suspending the acceptance of smaller packages,” the statement said.

US consumers were able to buy cheap goods from abroad under what was called the de minimis exemption, which allowed for smaller packages to be shipped into the US duty-free. 

That tariff exemption was revoked on May 2 for China and has now also been repealed for the rest of the world in a presidential order signed July 30 with the purpose of preventing the inflow of illegal drugs such as fentanyl. 

Japan Post’s decision falls in line with other national postal services that have temporarily suspended their shipping services to the US, including Britain and Australia. For now, Japan Post will continue providing a separate service for deliveries to the US that complies with US customs rules, albeit at significantly higher costs.

A recent survey on commerce website Ebay users found that fashion items, collector goods including trading cards, as well as auto parts were among the Japanese items that sold well in the US, according to a report by Japanese trading organisation Jetro. 

The same survey showed that more than 80 per cent of respondents were considering entering markets other than the US as a response to American tariff measures. BLOOMBERG

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