Impact of Tariff Hike... Amazon Warns "Sellers May Pass Burden to Consumers"

"Securing Inventory for Certain Products...
Will Maintain Low Prices"

Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce company, stated that sellers on the Amazon platform "may pass on the cost burden to consumers" due to the impact of the tariff policies of the Donald Trump administration.

In an interview with CNBC on the 10th (local time), CEO Jassy said regarding the Trump administration's tariff policy, "We are looking at all factors that could affect consumers and customers."

Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

CEO Jassy said that since President Trump announced reciprocal tariffs last week, "No significant changes in consumer behavior have been observed, and it is still too early for behavioral changes to appear." He added, "For some products, there was a pre-purchase phenomenon, but since only a few days have passed, it is difficult to determine whether this is a temporary anomaly in simple data or a lasting trend."

President Trump announced the day before that reciprocal tariffs on all trading partners except China would be suspended for 90 days, but the basic 10% tariff and item-specific tariffs would remain in place. In response, CEO Jassy emphasized that to minimize the impact of tariffs, "(For some products) we have proactively secured inventory," and "We will do everything we can to keep product prices low."

However, CEO Jassy mentioned the possibility of price increases, saying, "Some online sellers may pass the tariff burden on to consumers." He added, "We have communicated our concerns about (the tariff policy) to the government, and the authorities are aware of this."

A significant number of sellers, who sell about 60% of all products on Amazon's third-party marketplace, source their goods from China. President Trump has raised the reciprocal tariff rate to 125% against China, which declared retaliatory measures against the U.S. in response to the reciprocal tariffs. Adding the existing 20% tariff imposed on China, the total additional tariff rate on Chinese goods reaches 145%.

Furthermore, Bloomberg News reported that starting from the 2nd of next month, a 120% tariff will be imposed on small parcels under $800 coming from China and Hong Kong, raising concerns that shipments from Chinese e-commerce companies such as Temu and Shein, which sell relatively inexpensive goods, may be suspended.