Chinese e-commerce exports by air fell 16% year on year by weight in August, according to figures from consultant Aevean reported by Air Cargo News on September 22, 2026. The decline was driven by a 40% fall in volumes from China to Europe, after the European Union introduced a €3 charge on packages worth less than €150 at the start of July. Volumes to North America were more or less flat.
Other regions weakened too. Volumes to Asia Pacific were down 8%, with declines also recorded to the Middle East and South Asia and to Latin America, while volumes to Africa rose 71% as e-commerce platforms refocused their marketing. Air Cargo News noted that the August decline follows a slowdown in growth as countries clamp down on the duty-free import of low-value packages. The US scrapped its de minimis exemption for e-commerce packages in May 2025 and Brazil removed its exemption in August 2024; since then, the report says, e-commerce volumes from China to both countries have recovered.
Airlines have already reacted on the Europe side. At an EU cross-border e-commerce forum in Liege earlier in September, Ryan Keyrouse, chief executive of consultant and data provider Rotate, said carriers had cut freighter capacity on the China/Hong Kong–Europe trade by around 28% in response to the new charge, and that e-commerce demand from China to Europe fell 24% in July from a month earlier, to 112,000 tonnes. On a global basis, Air Cargo News reported, e-commerce volumes reached 295,000 tonnes in July 2026, 23% more than two years earlier.
What it means for shippers
- US-bound e-commerce is still flying. On these figures, the end of the de minimis exemption changed how low-value parcels enter the country, not whether they move: volumes to North America held level in August.
- Low-value shipments need entry planning. Without the exemption, small parcels no longer come in duty-free as they did. Check landed cost and paperwork with your customs broker before you ship.
- Do not assume spare transpacific space. Freighter capacity has been pulled from China–Europe routes, but the reports do not say where it has gone. Wait for your forwarder to confirm space and rates before planning around it.
- Peak season is close. Consolidated air freight arriving at LAX is broken down at a container freight station (CFS) before it can be delivered. Book CFS pickup and local delivery early for the fourth quarter.
Go Trucking Services handles air freight and LAX CFS pickup and delivery for shippers in Greater Los Angeles — see Air Freight and Drayage, or request a quote on the home page.
Sources:
- Air Cargo News: Chinese air cargo e-commerce volumes under pressure in August
- Air Cargo News: Air cargo e-commerce growth flatlines in July
Image: Jamesshliu, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).
