Shenzhen ramps up efforts to boost cross-border e-commerce amid global trade chaos caused by US tariffs

Amid global trade chaos caused by US tariffs, Shenzhen in South China's Guangdong Province has ramped up support for cross-border e-commerce businesses through new measures intended to help them explore overseas markets by providing better logistical and financial services.

In the first quarter, local customs processed more than 2 million e-commerce parcels per day on average, with growth accelerating since March, according to a post on the city's official WeChat account on Monday.

Shenzhen's cross-border e-commerce sector is supported by coordinated policies in customs, foreign exchange and taxation, creating a phased support system of compliance, channel expansion and brand upgrading. The effort enables local firms to secure funding, obtain faster clearance and enhance global market recognition, thus boosting their global competitiveness, the post said.

On Friday, the US officially ended its tariff exemption policy for Chinese parcels valued at less than $800. About 1.36 billion shipments using this provision entered the US in fiscal year 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing data from US Customs and Border Protection.

"They removed the scary import charge shock, but now, there is less stuff to buy, most of the best sellers were from China," said Juozas Kaziukenas, an independent e-commerce analyst, according to the report.

Despite rising global trade volatility, Shenzhen is leveraging its strong economic foundation to actively develop cross-border logistics in order to sustain its trade growth momentum.

The city, known as one of China's main cross-border e-commerce hubs, is home to more than 80,000 sellers - more than half of the national total - and operates 30 dedicated sea freight routes and 11 air freight channels, along with 4 million square meters of overseas warehouses.

Cross-border e-commerce relies heavily on cross-border logistics. The more developed the logistics network, the easier it is to achieve economies of scale, which in turn strengthens the resilience of e-commerce businesses against external risks, Hu Qimu, a deputy secretary-general of the Digital-Real Economies Integration Forum 50, told the Global Times on Monday.

As a pioneer of China's high-quality opening-up and a key cross-border e-commerce hub, Shenzhen has rolled out targeted measures to lower transaction costs and enhance logistics efficiency, helping mitigate the impact of tariffs, Hu added.

On April 27, the first cross-border e-commerce express train linking the China-Europe Railway Express with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area departed from Shenzhen, injecting new impetus into trade between China and Europe.

The new route enables Shenzhen-based e-commerce companies to offer overseas clients faster and more efficient logistics services, supporting their global market expansion, a representative of the express train service operator said, according to the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily.

Diverse trade fairs held in the city serve as key platforms for global business engagement, exemplified by a local expo targeting cross-border e-commerce that opened on April 25, which attracted the participation of more than 600 domestic and international suppliers.

In addition, leading local e-commerce firms have actively responded to challenges thanks to closer government-business coordination, contributing to Shenzhen's resilient cross-border e-commerce growth amid the reckless US tariff policies.

On April 25, Shenzhen-based cross-border e-commerce firm Sailvan Times reported its 2024 revenue surpassed 10 billion yuan ($1.38 billion), and its first-quarter 2025 revenue rose 36.65 percent year-on-year to 2.46 billion yuan, according to media reports.

To overcome the challenges resulting from US tariffs, the company is advancing business diversification through adjustments in logistics, market strategy and supply chains, the company said.

The US' small parcel duties will most affect end consumers, as companies can mitigate the impact through business model innovation and global supply chain restructuring to maintain steady operations, Hu said.