U.S. and China Propose Lower Tariffs on Some Goods: Chinese Home and Toy Sellers Should Calculate Using Current Duties
The U.S. and China may offer more favorable tariff treatment for about $60 billion in non-sensitive goods, but the proposal is still at the recommendation stage; sellers should calculate using current duties and verify SKU information.
What are the key facts?
- 1Proposed tariff reductions for about $60 billion in non-sensitive goods
- 2U.S. list includes small appliances, toys and holiday decorations
- 3Currently only a proposed product list for tariff reductions
- 4Specific rates and effective date have not been announced
- 5Chinese sellers should calculate landed costs using current duties
What happened?
The United States and China, through the newly established “U.S.-China Trade Board,” have each proposed lists of non-sensitive goods worth about $30 billion, or approximately $60 billion in total, that could receive more favorable tariff treatment. The U.S. list includes China-made small household appliances, toys, holiday decorations, bedding, tableware and child car seats. Some of these products overlap with home goods, gift, toy and consumer-electronics accessory categories sold by Chinese cross-border sellers on the U.S. market. China’s list includes agricultural products, cosmetics and medical equipment.
The report emphasized that these are currently only proposed product lists for tariff reductions, not measures already in effect. Specific tariff rates, reduction amounts and effective dates have not been announced, and each side must still complete its domestic legal procedures. Chinese sellers targeting the U.S. market cannot yet recalculate quotes using lower tariffs. They should first calculate landed costs using current duties and verify the HTS code, country of origin and list eligibility for each SKU. The change mainly concerns Chinese direct-shipping sellers, overseas-warehouse replenishment and sellers of toys, holiday products, small appliances and home goods that rely on low-price competition.
What does this mean for cross-border sellers?
The U.S. and China may provide more favorable tariff treatment for about $60 billion in non-sensitive goods, including small appliances, toys and holiday decorations commonly sold by Chinese sellers. This could eventually improve landed costs and pricing flexibility. Because the list remains only a proposal and specific rates and an effective date have not been announced, do not quote using post-reduction costs yet.
What should sellers do now?
- 1This week, create a SKU list for small-appliance, toy and home-goods listings on the U.S. market, and enter the current duties, HTS code and country of origin for each item. Export a reviewable landed-cost table when complete, without applying the proposed lower rates.HS duty estimate
- 2This week, review quotes for China direct shipments and overseas-warehouse replenishment, and recalculate landed costs and profit using current duties. Cover relevant SKUs, retain before-and-after calculation records, and confirm that quotes do not reference unpublished rates.Profit calculator
- 3This week, screen U.S.-market listings for holiday decorations, bedding, tableware and child car seats, and verify whether each SKU falls within the proposed list. Output a “covered/not covered/to be confirmed” result for follow-up tracking.