Chinese firms, trapped in Trump policy maelstrom, struggle to stay on course
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US Postal Service suspends inbound parcels from Hong Kong, mainland China US Postal Service suspends inbound parcels from Hong Kong, mainland China Mandy Zuo in Shanghai and Frank Chen in Shanghai Published: 6:00am, 7 Feb 2025
From tariffs to package deliveries, unexpected policy declarations – and in some cases, near-immediate reversals – from US President Donald Trump are becoming an inescapable aspect of risk calculation for Chinese companies with links to the American market. Only a few weeks into Trump's second term, many businesses are already struggling to cope with the swift changes, including the brief suspension and resumption of accepting parcels from mainland China and Hong Kong – an order issued and rescinded in a matter of hours on Wednesday.
Though unpredictability appears to be a fact of life under the new US president, Chinese exporters and cross-border e-commerce sellers must be on constant alert as rapidly changing geopolitical circumstances can lead to sudden surges in cost.
David Wang, who manufactures baking tools in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, said he planned to develop new products after the Lunar New Year and sell them through e-commerce platforms in the US.
'But given the current situation, it seems wiser to put those plans on hold for now,' he said, referring to the delivery stoppage.
If another moratorium is announced later, he said, 'many cross-border e-commerce businesses will struggle.'
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