A man walking past a logo of fast fashion e-commerce company Shein outside its office in Guangzhou in southern China’s Guangdong province.
Jade Gao | Afp | Getty Images
The bottom of the barrel prices that have made Chinese-linked e-tailers Shein and Temu so popular with American consumers could soon rise if the Biden administration curtails their use of a trade law loophole.
The companies, known for their $5 T-shirts and $10 sweaters, could see prices rise by at least 20% if the so-called de minimis provision is changed, a spokesperson for the Republican majority of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party told CNBC. The committee made the estimate after launching investigations into Shein and Temu more than a year ago.
Neil Saunders, a retail analyst and the managing director of GlobalData, agreed the policy change would likely increase prices, but couldn’t say by how much.
“If the de minimis exemption is removed, then the cost of products from marketplaces like Shein …