In a transformative development within the global retail sector, Temu, the cost-effective shopping platform under the aegis of PDD Holdings, has remarkably matched Amazon.com in cross-border market share on an international scale.
Launched in 2022, Temu witnessed its market share ascend dramatically from under 1% to an impressive 24% by the previous year, aligning it closely with the American titan, Amazon, as reported by a recent survey from the International Post Corporation (IPC), an organization representing 26 national postal services across Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America.
Conversely, Amazon’s market share has experienced a slight decline in recent years. In the cross-border sector—where consumers engage in purchasing goods that are shipped from abroad—Amazon’s share stood at 25% in 2024, down from 26% in the preceding two years.
“The export of Chinese e-commerce, particularly through Temu, has surged substantially in the past three years, even as the global e-commerce supply chain undergoes transformation due to impending customs changes in 2025 and into 2026,” noted IPC chief executive Holger Winklbauer.
Meanwhile, Shein, another retail powerhouse originating from China, established its share at 9% in 2025, while AliExpress, managed by Alibaba Group Holding, maintained 8%, a decrease from 9% in 2024 and 12% the previous year, as per IPC statistics. It is noteworthy that Alibaba owns the Post.
The survey—conducted in September of the previous year with 30,970 respondents spanning 37 countries, including the US, France, and Australia—revealed that several platforms have experienced substantial market attrition.
Notably, eBay endured a staggering 68% decrease in its market share from 2018 to 2025, plummeting to fifth place last year with a mere 5%, compared to 17% in 2018.
In spite of the overarching trade tensions, China achieved an unprecedented trade surplus of US$1.19 trillion in 2025, buoyed by historically high exports totaling US$3.77 trillion, according to official statistics.
Temu, whose parent company PDD also encompasses the Chinese e-commerce behemoth Pinduoduo, procures a substantial array of products from China.
Following its inception, Temu quickly penetrated major global markets, becoming a household name in the United States after launching high-visibility Super Bowl advertisements in 2023 and 2024, centered on the provocative slogan, “Shop Like a Billionaire.”
These bold marketing initiatives spurred Amazon to react with its Amazon Haul service in 2024, featuring price limits set at US$20. That year, Temu’s monthly active user count eclipsed that of Amazon, according to analyses from the American equity research firm Bernstein Research.
Nonetheless, the influx of low-cost Chinese products has encountered formidable challenges from regulatory bodies in the US and Europe.
In the prior year, Washington rescinded the “de minimis” exemption for commercial imports, thereby eliminating the duty-free status for goods valued under US$800.
Beginning in July of this year, the EU is poised to impose a flat fee of €3 (US$3.50) for each small parcel valued beneath €150 that is dispatched directly from a non-EU country.
Source link: Thestar.com.my.
