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A Chinese clothing giant has raised prices by up to 377 percent, but only for the U.S. as the trade war continues. Live from the U.K., this is the Marketplace Morning Report from the BBC World Service. I'm Sarah Rogers. Good morning.
China says it's fully confident it will achieve its target of about 5% economic growth this year, despite an escalating trade war with the US. And we're now starting to see the impact of those trade tariffs. Imports from China to the US are down and prices for some American shoppers are up. The BBC's Mariko Oi joins us from Singapore. Hi, Mariko.
Hi, Sarah. So we're seeing those tariffs play out now, aren't we, on imports to the US from China. Can you just run us through those numbers? Sure.
Yeah, sure, Sarah. But before that, I think I have to make a full confession that I've talked too much about the trade war. I'm losing my voice. Apologies in advance. But yeah, in terms of the real world impact. So, for example, the port of Los Angeles, that's where imports from Asia usually arrive. And this week, the volume of imports are down 30 percent compared to last week.
because while Washington has paused many of the tariffs on other global economies, for China, there's that 145% tariffs. And of course, China also retaliated with its own 125% tariffs on American imports. And are those pretty?
particular areas, Mariko, that this is hitting more than others? You know, things like, you know, Sheen and Teemu, those huge Chinese e-commerce giants that became very, very popular among American consumers, especially for younger generations. So, you know, we're talking about things like toys, clothes, homeware stuff. And, you know,
Sheen has just confirmed the price increase of about 30% to 50% on most products. But, you know, some items going up by about 380%. I mean, you know, we're still talking about something that used to be worth about $1 now being sold for $6. Now we're hearing about those price rises and seeing the impact. Is there even more pressure?
I think, yeah, definitely. But at the same time, you know, it's interesting that, you know, the language from Washington has somewhat softened slightly, you know, but when it comes to Beijing, their attitude has not changed at all. Just today, we heard from a top economic official from China saying that China is on the right side of history when it comes to this brutal trade war. And of course, Beijing has previously said that they will fight till the
end. But I think that's partly why we're starting to hear from American businesses pressuring the American government, because I think they all thought that maybe China would just, you know, cave. And that's why the pressure is now kind of on the White House side. Walmart and other retail giants actually went to speak to Mr. Trump, explaining how significant these tariffs could
And now there's a report that Walmart have already told those Chinese suppliers to start shipments. And now this is only based on one report. So we're starting to get these stories that might suggest that maybe there's some kind of a climb down, at least behind the scene. Mariko Oi, I'm glad your voice held out so you could bring us that update. Thanks for joining us on Marketplace. Thanks, Sarah. Okay, let's see the numbers. ♪
South Korea's biggest cell phone provider has started replacing 23 million SIM cards after a major data hack earlier this month. Customers are lining up at SK Telecom's stores as the company says it can currently replace only 5% of them. And shares in British food delivery company Deliveroo hit a three-year high, shooting up more than 16%. It's after a $3.6 billion buyout offer from US peer DoorDash.
World military expenditure reached $2.72 trillion last year. That's according to a report from leading conflict think tank the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. That's an increase of 9.4% from the year before.
Let's look at transport now and total global airline revenue is expected to top one trillion US dollars for the first time this year. And the International Air Transport Association predicts 145 billion of that money will be made from charging customers to pick their seats and from baggage fees. Now, the average ticket price is expected to fall. But as the BBC's Sam Gruay reports, surcharges aren't really landing with customers.
Standing outside Toronto Billy Bishop Airport, I meet Lauren Alexander, who's 24 and has flown over for the weekend from Boston, carrying only a backpack to avoid baggage fees. It's ridiculous. It's way too much money. Yeah, it feels like a trick because it's like you buy the ticket, you think it's going to be less expensive, then you have to pay like 200 extra dollars to just bring your bag with you. There was a time when seat selection, meals and checked bags came standard.
Now it's a business worth billions. As aviation consultant Jay Sorensen explains. Over the passage of time, the low-cost carriers were providing very significant competition. Traditional airlines felt they had to do something to meet that competition. Jay
Jay says these extra fees make an estimated $145 billion for the industry annually. Peter Elbers is the CEO of India's biggest airline, Indigo, which charges fees for things like seat choice and food. I think what for us is important is to make sure that the customer has a realistic price proposition. Well, we offer the ticket and then it's optional whether you want to further expand it with specific seats or specific food options.
But beyond airlines, bag rules are something luggage brands like Antler have been capitalising on too. Kirsty Glenn is the firm's managing director. You know, we've seen huge spikes in consumer searches online on our website, for example, looking for under-seat bags. There is a huge market for bags that perfectly fit
these what we call them baggage sizes. Travel journalist Chelsea Dickinson makes videos about air travel on TikTok. The app says posts about the hashtag luggage have increased in volume by 135% this year. Social media has really propelled this idea of needing a bag that fits the baggage allowance requirements. And I say this as somebody who has directly experienced this before.
because that has become a core part of the content that I create and post on social media. Experts and customers will be watching closely to see whether airlines continue to charge or whether they start to include the costs of onboard benefits to try and differentiate themselves from the competition. I'm the BBC's Sam Grohe for Marketplace. That's it from the Marketplace Morning Report. I'm Sarah Rogers.
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