2026-07-01
8 分钟Why online shopping just got more expensive for millions of people.
It's World Business Express from the BBC World Service.
I'm Sarah Rogers.
Also, US President Donald Trump makes a billion from crypto and the price of oil teeters close to pre-war levels.
Yes, first a story that might not go down too well with European shoppers
who love filling up their online baskets with cheap goods from China.
From today, the European Union has introduced a custom charge
of just over $3 on low-value items bought outside the block.
It was good white last, dear girls, but now it is over.
All of these custom charges are just getting too out of hand.
How much do you think I would be paying in customs if I ordered these three dresses off of Sheen?
Now, they're the exact same style, exact same fabric.
You would think, OK, well, three-year-old, they're all dresses.
Wrong.
Well, businesses are meant to pay the charge, but plenty of shoppers, like you've just heard, aren't convinced.
Now, it'll heavily impact purchases from Chinese companies Sheen, Timu and AliExpress.
Previously, anything bought for less than $170 was exempt from duties.
The EU Commission, though, says low-value parcels reached nearly $7 billion
in 2025. That's four times the 2022 total, with around 90% coming from China.
Dirk Houting is a Dutch MEP for the centre-right European People's Party and the lead negotiator on the legislation.