Shenzhen is giving 2 million yuan to cross-border e-commerce merchants as ‘made in China, sold on Amazon’ sellers continue to suffer
- Shenzhen is offering cross-border e-commerce merchants a subsidy of 2 million yuan as encouragement to find alternatives to Amazon
- At least 50,000 accounts of Chinese merchants have been affected since May, causing a loss of more than 100 billion yuan for the industry
Online merchants based in Shenzhen that were affected by the crackdown were invited to a meeting last week to share their losses, responses and plans after the closure of their stores and to raise the “expectation of government help”, the Commerce Bureau of Shenzhen said in a notice seen by the South China Morning Post.
The meeting was part of the Guangdong province commerce authority’s efforts to “study and formulate relevant solutions” in the aftermath of the Amazon ban on Chinese merchants, and to “help lift cross-border e-commerce companies out of the difficulties”, the Shenzhen commerce bureau also said in the notice.
Earlier this month, the bureau announced that it would grant 2 million yuan to cross-border sellers for each “independent store” – websites built by the merchants themselves as opposed to opening a store on a larger platform – they set up.
To qualify, applicants must have started operation before 2019 and have monthly sales worth US$300,000 or more. In addition, an expert panel will review each application, according to the bureau’s announcement.
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Under the scheme, operators of overseas warehouses identified by China’s Ministry of Commerce as best-in-class cross-border service providers will also be awarded 3 million yuan while other warehouse operators can apply for 2 million yuan.
Shenzhen, home to some of the country’s biggest technology companies, is also a cross-border e-commerce hub.
The city has more than 40,000 firms involved in the industry, accounting for about 35 per cent of the entire sector across China, according to the Shenzhen Cross-Border E-commerce Association.
As more Chinese merchants flocked to international retail sites like Amazon and eBay to reach additional consumers, some also brought with them the grey area practices common in Chinese marketplaces, including fake reviews and inflated sales numbers, according to industry insiders.
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At least 50,000 accounts of Chinese merchants have been affected since May, causing a loss of more than 100 billion yuan for the industry, according to a report by the Shenzhen organisation in July.
AliExpress is operated by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding, owner of the Post.
