China-US e-commerce airfreight drops steeply in May

The US removal of the de minimis exemption for packages from China in May resulted in a 43% decline in e-commerce shipments from China to the US.

Figures from Aevean highlight how e-commerce platforms switched their shipments by air from the US to other markets to take the sting out of the fall to the US.

The figures from Aevan show that e-commerce volumes transported by air from China to the US fell 43% month on month from 109,325 tonnes in April to 62,658 tonnes in May.

However, overall e-commerce volumes transported out of China by air were down by a lower amount of 3% to just over 400,000 tonnes, demonstrating how the platforms have switched their focus to other locations.

Aevean head of consulting Maarten Wormer described the drop in volumes to the US as “steep” and said it followed the US decision to terminate the de minimis exemption that allowed packages worth less than $800 to enter duty-free and with minimal customs scrutiny.

The removal of the exemption means packages from China transported by a commercial airline will need to pay a 30% tariff rate, or, when using postal networks, they will be subject to a rate of 54% or a flat fee of $100.

Much of that slack has been taken up by Europe. The Aevan figures show that e-commerce volumes airfreighted to Europe have been gradually increasing since the start of the year and in May reached 119,810 tonnes, up 13% compared with April.

Volumes to ‘other’ destinations were also on the up by a similar amount, increasing by 12% month on month in May to 132,349 tonnes.

Meanwhile, there was also a slight 4.1% month-on-month increase to 87,383 tonnes from China to Southeast Asia.

The statistics are the latest in a series produced by Aevean demonstrating the impact of US tariffs on various industry verticals.

Figures from the consultant and data provider show that laptop tonnages from Vietnam to the US surged in recent months, while volumes from China have dropped.

Also, India’s smartphone industry has benefited from the tariffs, overtaking China to become the largest supplier by air of the product.