"Orders Canceled Without Notice"
"Mistakenly Placed Purchase Orders"
Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce company, has reportedly canceled a large number of orders for products manufactured in China and other Asian countries following the announcement of reciprocal tariffs by the Donald Trump administration, Bloomberg reported on the 9th (local time).
Sources said that after President Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on the 2nd, orders for products such as beach chairs, scooters, and air conditioners placed with Amazon suppliers were halted. The cancellations were made without any prior notice, leading suppliers to view this as a response to the tariffs.
Amazon did not respond to Bloomberg's inquiries regarding this matter. In its annual report released in February, Amazon identified international trade disputes as a risk factor. Amazon stated, "Suppliers based in China provide a significant portion of our components and finished products."
A supplier who has been delivering Chinese-made beach chairs to Amazon for over 10 years received an email from Amazon last week. The email instructed them not to ship some purchase orders that were mistakenly placed. However, the email did not mention tariffs.
After a wholesale order worth $500,000 (approximately 730 million KRW) was canceled despite the products already being manufactured, the supplier now faces the situation of having to pay the factory and find other buyers. The supplier, who requested anonymity, said Amazon had never canceled orders in this manner before.
Scott Miller, a former Amazon supplier manager who now works as an e-commerce consultant, stated that Amazon canceled orders for products made in China and other Asian countries from several clients. He said the cancellations were made without prior notice, which might force suppliers to renegotiate with Amazon. He added, "Amazon essentially holds all the cards," and "The only options suppliers have are to sell this inventory in other countries at lower margins or collaborate with other retailers."
According to the beach chair seller and Miller, Amazon canceled direct import orders. This means Amazon purchases inventory wholesale from the country where the products are manufactured and then ships them to its own warehouses in the United States. Amazon acts as the importer for these orders, which implies that Amazon must bear the tariffs once the products arrive at U.S. ports, Bloomberg explained.
Amazon has imported products in this manner for years to reduce costs by leveraging bulk shipping rates. If these orders are canceled and suppliers export the products to the U.S. by other means, the tariff burden falls on the suppliers.
Products that Amazon purchases directly from suppliers account for about 40% of total sales. The remaining products come from independent sellers who rent digital shelf space on Amazon and pay fees for logistics and advertising.
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