Amazon announced on Wednesday that it will levy a 5 percent fuel and inflation premium on sellers in the United States who use its fulfilment services.
According to a notice emailed to sellers and seen by CNBC, the surcharge is “subject to change.”
Due to rising inflation, the e-commerce behemoth is attempting to offset some of its own costs by passing fees on to vendors.
Amazon announced on Wednesday that it wants to increase the fees it collects from third-party sellers in the United States who use the company’s fulfilment services by around 5 percent to account for rising fuel and inflation costs.
The cost will be implemented in approximately two weeks and is “subject to change,” according to the company’s notification to sellers, which was obtained and reviewed by CNBC.
Specifically, according to the notice, “the surcharge will apply to all product kinds,” including non-clothes, apparel, dangerous goods, small and light objects, among others. “Beginning on April 28, the cost will apply to all units sent from fulfilment centres,” says the company.
Due to rising inflation, the e-commerce behemoth is attempting to offset some of its own costs by passing fees on to vendors.
Sellers who utilise Amazon’s Fulfillment by Amazon, or FBA, service already pay a charge to the company. Purchasing inventory storage space in Amazon’s warehouses and making use of the company’s supply chain and shipping operations is a paid service for merchants.
According to a survey by Jungle Scout, a company that develops product research software for Amazon sellers, around 89 percent of the company’s 2 million-plus vendors will use FBA in 2021.
A spokesman for Amazon stated in an email to CNBC that the company expected a return to normalcy in 2022 once Covid-19 limitations around the world were lifted. “However, fuel and inflation have caused additional obstacles,” the spokesperson added. “Because it is still unclear whether these inflationary expenses will rise or fall, or for how long they will continue, we will apply a fuel and inflation surcharge for the first time, rather than implementing a permanent fee modification — a technique that is widely employed across the supply chain.”
At the time of writing, Amazon’s fuel and inflation surcharge is 24 cents per unit, which is less than the 42 cents UPS fuel surcharge and the 49 cents FedEx price, according to the company.
