‘Did I Miss Something?’: Online Shoppers Shocked as Trump Tariffs Jack Up Prices 145%

China-based online retailer Temu started adding “import charges” for orders being sent to the U.S. in recent days, often more than doubling the cost. The charges are all thanks to President Donald Trump’s tariffs. And American customers are not too happy about any of it.

“I haven’t been keeping up with news or what’s going on?!?! I have been ordering a lot this past month for my daughters wedding.. did I miss something???” one Redditor asked in a discussion about Temu’s prices skyrocketing on Monday.

That commenter was ridiculed for being oblivious to Trump’s tariffs but clarified later that they knew tariffs were coming. They just didn’t know about the timing and exact percentage, given the fact that Trump has changed both so frequently since his “Liberation Day” announcement on April 2. And that’s a reasonable thing to be confused about, since Trump has caused so much chaos and confusion with his on-again, off-again tariffs.

As it stands now, Trump has slapped China with a 145% tariff on goods, which may not have been a problem for retailers like Temu and Shein at first glance. That’s because shipments valued under $800 were previously allowed to avoid tariffs under what was called the de minimis exemption. But Trump has pledged to close that loophole on May 2, meaning sellers on Temu are now starting to add on that 145% tax for the goods they ship to the U.S.

“This is crap,” one commenter on r/TemuThings wrote with a screenshot showing how their $28 purchase had risen to $71.

“Nah dawg, I’m out,” wrote another, showing how their $38 order had turned into $94.

Customers at fast fashion giant Shein are struggling with the changes as well, though the subreddit for the company is noting more empty shelves, as it were, than higher prices. It seems that Shein is sometimes opting to just pull products rather than bothering to try and send things at a much higher price.

The users of r/AliExpress were also posting screenshots of their shockingly expensive shopping carts. In one post, a user showed their purchase of some glitter fabric roll, which went from $20 to $72.

Others were posting about possible workarounds, including the idea that perhaps Americans could get things shipped to a third country with lower tariffs as a go-between so that the goods didn’t appear like they were actually coming from China.

Most people seem dismayed at the tariffs, with users writing obituaries for the services they liked best.

“Rest In Peace [AliExpress] It was nice while it lasted. We know is not your fault but unfortunately this is the world we live in now. We will have to adapt to this newer, not better times.(United States of America),” one user wrote.

“For us, the United States of Americans, Aliexpress Will die this week,” the comment continued. “It just doesn’t make sense to buy from you anymore at all. And we understand why. (From USA) So long our Chinese friends…”

Trump keeps insisting that his team is talking to Chinese officials to negotiate a “better” trade deal, but that doesn’t seem to be true. China has continued to deny that any talks are taking place, and whenever reporters get the opportunity to ask Trump about specifics, he either speaks generally about the situation or says something so ridiculous that even a child could tell he’s lying.

“We’ve been meeting with China,” Trump insisted last week. But that’s not what China says. At all.

“Let me make it clear one more time that China and the U.S. are not engaged in any consultation or negotiation on tariffs,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Monday at a press conference, according to CNBC.

Last week, Trump went so far as to claim that Chinese President Xi Jinping had called the White House to negotiate a deal, another claim that Chinese officials deny. What will happen if China and the U.S. can’t agree to a deal? It appears those inflated prices will stick around on goods coming into the U.S. And many experts expect store shelves to start feeling a lot emptier in a couple of weeks.

Gary Cohn, one of Trump’s top economic advisors during his first term, was on Face the Nation on Sunday. He explained how it takes about 8 weeks for goods leaving China to find themselves on U.S. store shelves.

There’s still the possibility that Trump could roll back the tariffs. People in MAGAland have floated leaks to the press that try to suggest tariffs on China could be lowered to 65%. That, to be clear, would still be a substantial tax on goods. But it would be less drastic than 145%.

Nobody knows for sure what’s ahead, not only for tariffs against China but for other nations as well. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that India could be the first country to sign a new trade deal with the U.S., but nobody knows how seriously to take his comments. Other rumors have swirled that maybe Japan would sign a trade deal with the U.S., but it’s unclear how seriously to take those assertions either.

All we know is that, soon, we’re all going to be spending more on goods that used to be relatively cheap. And as more and more people realize that, it should be interesting to see how Americans respond. Trump can imprison people for writing op-eds, kick pediatric cancer patients out of the country without their meds, and toss a judge in jail without the average American getting too riled up. But if you take our cheap goods from China, that could be a step too far.