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De Minimis Ends; More Companies Raise Prices; UAW Claims Vote Victory By Mark R. Long

The cost of ordering packages from overseas is jumping today following the end of the U.S.'s de minimis tariff exemption just after midnight.

The Wall Street Journal's Esther Fung writes that FedEx, UPS and other parcel carriers are bracing for the added workload of collecting new duties and for confusion among customers hit with unexpected bills. Many postal services in Europe and Asia stopped shipping e-commerce packages to the U.S. altogether ahead of the end of duty-free treatment for parcels worth $800 or less .

The tariff cost will now depend on the country of origin, the type and value of the product and whether the package is sent through a post office or a commercial parcel carrier. The tariff bill could cost more than the item itself, especially if the product contains steel, aluminum or copper components.

The Trump administration is planning to expand national-security-tariffs on those metals and other industrial goods in coming months, the Journal's Gavin Bade and Bob Tita write. It is doing this in hope of redirecting production in these sectors to the U.S. and to set a backstop to legal threats in the trade war.

Tariffs on steel and aluminum were expanded this month to cover more than 400 new product lines with 50% levies and increasing compliance costs for companies. Those charges will likely be broadened further, along with expansions of existing tariffs on copper and automotive parts.

The European Union will move to eliminate all tariffs on U.S. industrial imports and expand access for American farm products to shield European automakers from steeper duties. (WSJ) Caterpillar raised its forecast for the net impact from tariffs to $1.5 billion-$1.8 billion this year. (WSJ) Mexico's postal service became the latest to suspend package shipments to the U.S. ahead of the end of de minimis. (Politico)

Note to Readers: The Logistics Report won't be published Monday in observance of the Labor Day holiday in the U.S. We will be back Tuesday.

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Quotable Retail Prices

Shipments of overseas goods aren't the only things getting more expensive, with a raft of U.S. companies saying prices are going up. The Journal's Patrick Thomas and Sarah Nassauer write that companies ranging from Hormel Foods and J.M. Smucker to Ace Hardware said this week that they would raise prices for reasons ranging from higher meat costs to tariffs .

This followed retail giants such as Walmart, Target and Best Buy saying some tariff-related price hikes are in place, with more to come. For consumers, the announcements portend another round of sticker shock when buying groceries and household goods. Inflation has eased in recent months, but job growth has also slowed , and there are signs shoppers worry that tariffs could further increase prices. Labor

A contest over union representation at Ford's first U.S. electric-vehicle battery plant will come down to a handful of disputed ballots. Rank-and-file workers at the BlueOval SK plant in Kentucky voted 526-515 in favor of the United Auto Workers this week, with 41 challenged ballots outstanding, according to the National Labor Relations Board. The NLRB said 1,249 voters were eligible.

The Journal's Christopher Otts writes that the close election will determine whether the UAW secures a foothold at all three of the traditional Detroit automakers' new battery plants. The UAW claimed victory, saying the disputed ballots shouldn't count. BlueOval SK, a joint venture of Ford and South Korea's SK On, said "each eligible vote" should count.

ZM Trucks opened its first North American battery-electric truck assembly plant in Fontana, Calif., with production of Class 7 and 8 trucks and tractors set to start next year. (Transport Topics) Aurora has entered a partnership with McLeod Software to create what they say is the first transportation management system for autonomous trucks. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) Number of the Day In Other News

The U.S. economy grew at a faster pace than previously thought in the second quarter. (WSJ)

Just over 191,000 Americans initiated unemployment benefits last week, roughly the same level as during the same August week of 2024 and 2023. (WSJ)

Central U.S. factory activity is slowly recovering as demand improves, according to the Kansas City Fed. (WSJ)

Confidence in the eurozone's economic outlook fell back as sluggish growth weighed on sentiment, surveys showed. (WSJ)

China's BYD sold more electric cars in Europe than Tesla once again last month. (WSJ)

China's Li Auto guided for sales to drop by more than a third after it reported disappointing second-quarter earnings. (WSJ)

Australia's Lynas Rare Earths said it will raise about $488 million of equity to speed its expansion, though a planned facility in Texas may not go ahead. (WSJ)

Industrial-packaging company Greif is pivoting toward faster-growing sectors like pharmaceuticals and food, and streamlining operations. (WSJ)

Cosco Shipping Ports said it was looking for acquisitions in Southeast Asia, South America, Africa and the Middle East as China's exports to those emerging markets rise. (Reuters)

Fertilizer prices are surging because of tightening supplies and tariff concerns, cutting into U.S. farmers' profits. (Bloomberg)

Nippon Steel is looking to spend $4 billion on a new electric arc furnace steel mill for its recently acquired U.S. Steel. (Nikkei Asia)

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering will merge two shipbuilding units [https://www.chosun.com/english/industry-en/2025/08/28/7NLVQCAK3FA4XP2GOQJ3A2GVE4/#::text=HD%20Hyundai%20Heavy%20Industries%20Co, builder%20of%20medium%2Dsized%20vessels.] as the South Korean company aims to strengthen maritime cooperation with the U.S. (The Chosun Daily)

India's top shipping official pitched to foreign envoys a $1 trillion plan to upgrade the nation's ports, shipping and logistics sectors. (The Maritime Executive)

Two New York men pleaded guilty in federal court to orchestrating a fraud scheme targeting investors interested in pre-IPO stocks, including freight forwarder Flexport. (Staten Island Advance)

Japanese toilet maker TOTO last week opened a $224 million factory in Georgia and plans to shift more production to North America. (Supply Chain Dive)

A U.S. unit of South Korea's Hanwha Ocean ordered 10 oil and chemical tankers from affiliate Hanwha Philly Shipyard, the biggest American commercial vessel order in over 20 years. (gCaptain)

About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at [mark.long@wsj.com]. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long , Liz Young and Paul Berger .

This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

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August 29, 2025 07:04 ET (11:04 GMT)

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