Amazon may gain from cross-border retail boost

Bloomberg

US online retailers like Amazon.com Inc. stand to gain from the Trump administration’s push to throw open the doors for Canadians and Mexicans to buy American goods duty-free.
The US is demanding Canada and Mexico raise the threshold at which duties are applied to purchases crossing the border, according to two people with knowledge of a proposal put forward during negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement. Canadians pay import taxes on purchases from the US above C$20 ($16), and Mexicans pay duties when they buy more than $50.
Raising the threshold to about $800—the same as in the US— was a stated goal in US.
Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer’s list of Nafta objectives released in July.
The Trump administration is sticking to that goal in talks, said the people, who asked not to be named because the talks aren’t public. Round four of the discussions will take place in Washington from Octpber 11-15.
Raising the so-called de minimis levels would affect everything from the amount of clothing and big-screen TVs consumers can afford when shopping across the border, to the deals they find online through exchanges such as EBay Inc.
With this proposal, Amazon has found an unlikely champion in President Donald Trump, who has tweeted criticism that the firm is hurting tax-paying retailers.
Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos also owns the Washington Post newspaper, which Trump has also frequently attacked over its coverage of his campaign and administration. The issue is also an example of how Trump’s team is pushing to lower export barriers, even as it explores measures to discourage imports and protect American companies. Amazon, through a spokeswoman, declined to comment.

Nafta Concerns
Mexico and Canada have both said that raising the de minimis level could be a burden for their domestic industries. It risks inflaming tensions at a time when Mexico and Canada are already chafing at US demands for major concessions that would slash its trade deficit.
Traditional retailers in both Canada and Mexico oppose the proposal, concerned that e-commerce companies like Amazon will undercut them on prices. Mexico’s shoe and clothing producers also worry that raising the limit will lead to more imports from Asia.
At stake during the negotiations—which the parties want to wrap up by year-end—is the future of the entire deal.