With Black Friday still about a month away, cross-border sellers in Shenzhen and Yiwu are sharply trimming overseas-warehouse inventory — a direct response to the EU's new low-value-parcel rules, the Economic Observer reports.
Since July 1, 2026, the EU has abolished the 150-euro de-minimis duty exemption and imposed a 3-euro levy on low-value parcels, soon to be followed by handling fees and mandatory product-labeling compliance. Sellers now face a choice between paying tax on direct shipments or tying up capital in pre-stocked warehouses.
One Shenzhen home-goods seller cut his planned Black Friday stock from 18,600 units across 28 products last year to about 8,400 across 24 this year. A Yiwu festival-decorations seller dropped from 41 products at full volume to 33 products at roughly 35% of last year's quantity, while another cut European warehouse stock to about 42%. Sellers plan to replenish via air-parcel top-ups based on real pre-orders.
Source: Economic Observer (Nov 1, 2026)
