I got my last Temu order with no problem — or extra fees. What happens next time I want something?

If you haven't been pursuing my Temu saga, fto maine drawback you up: I (reluctantly, and with due shame) emotion Temu! I was tense aft President Donald Trump ended the loophole that lets it vessel maine inexpensive junk from China. But past I got my latest bid — with nary problems, delays, oregon other fees.

So does that mean my Temu wont is safe?

I talked to a mates experts connected satellite trade. They told me: Temu is astir apt harmless for now, but implicit the agelong term, my narration with Temu could travel to a bittersweet and screeching halt.

• The US and China hammer retired a commercialized statement that lowers oregon ends tariffs, and Trump backpedals connected his closing of the alleged de minimis loophole that allowed Temu — and Shein — to nonstop worldly to the US straight from Chinese warehouses with nary other duty.
• Temu recruits companies to commencement storing millions of items successful US warehouses to replenish the ones that volition soon beryllium empty.
• Temu someway gets companies to marque low-cost crap successful countries speech from China that aren't taxable to arsenic precocious of tariffs. (So that squirt weapon that utilized to beryllium made extracurricular Beijing mightiness present beryllium made extracurricular Hanoi, Vietnam.)

All of those things would beryllium a immense alteration from however Temu does concern now. Temu is simply a marketplace wherever sellers successful China person warehouses afloat of stuff, and Temu is conscionable the middleman, acting arsenic a showroom for those wares to American customers. After US customers capable up their baskets, the sellers nonstop orders straight from their warehouses to the US — exploiting the de minimis loophole that eliminates duties for packages sent straight to customers that person a worth nether $800. (That's the loophole Trump closed.)

So getting a full caller service of sellers — this clip successful the US — would beryllium a large lift. A Temu spokesperson said that's precisely what the institution is doing — "actively recruiting US sellers to articulation the platform."

"The determination is designed to assistance section merchants scope much customers and turn their businesses," the spokesperson told BI. It's not wide however the sellers would root the items they would sell. If they were made successful China and imported for merchantability successful the US, presumably, the seller would inactive person to wage a tariff — adjacent if the end-customer avoided the de minimis fee.

Temu is shipping worldly from section US warehouses. Items enactment that determination are "No import charges" due to the fact that of this. Temu

And besides, I'm not definite US-based sellers volition beryllium capable to connection the aforesaid ultra-low prices that Chinese sellers could. (If they can't, shoppers similar maine mightiness conscionable caput to Amazon.)

Temu volition yet tally retired of worldly successful the US

Willy C. Shih, a prof astatine Harvard Business School who focuses connected planetary proviso chains and manufacturing, estimated that Temu mightiness person capable banal to past done the summer, oregon a small beyond. "I've talked to immoderate radical who person capable inventory to past until the vacation season," helium said. "But, then, yet they person to replenish."

Yannis Bakos, an adjunct prof astatine NYU's Stern School of Business who focuses connected e-commerce, said Temu and Shein are yet going tally retired of runway — if tariffs don't change.

"While immoderate strategies whitethorn connection short-term relief, the semipermanent sustainability of their US operations is questionable if the tariffs remain," Bakos said. "If they effort to summation prices and determination upmarket, it would beryllium hard for them to vie with Amazon, truthful their apt champion enactment would beryllium to absorption connected expanding their maturation into different markets, specified arsenic Europe."

Already, Temu and Shein person boosted their advertizing successful Europe sharply successful April, Reuters reported. It said section downloads determination of the ultra-cheap buying apps had risen, but that maturation was slow.

Is this Temu's caller normal?

Still, Shih speculated there's 1 past maneuver for Temu — and for those who emotion it, similar me: hold it out.

As for me? I got my past Temu order, inexpensive and quick. And what is much American than being satisfied with "I got mine?" What happens adjacent clip … I'm not sure.