Article Author:
Associated Press
Hallelujah Hadero
NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon is raising its fees for third-party sellers again. A service that packs and ships products to customers.
From October 15th through January 23rd, the company will charge sellers a $0.35 fee for each item sold using Amazon's fulfillment services in the United States and Canada.
This is the second fee increase the online retail giant has imposed on merchants this year, according to a notice sent to merchants on Tuesday. In April, the company added a 5% "fuel and inflation" surcharge to offset gas costs and inflation nearing their highest levels in 40 years.
To take advantage of Amazon's fulfillment services, merchants must pay different fees depending on the size, weight, or category of the item.
In a notice sent out Tuesday, Amazon said it will experience higher fulfillment and logistics costs during the holiday season as more shipments are transported. The company said it previously absorbed these cost increases. But seasonal spending has now "reached new heights," the company said.
"Distribution partners are very important to us and this is not a decision taken lightly," the company said.
CNBC was the first to report the fee increase.
Holiday season price adjustments are nothing new to Amazon. Last week, the U.S. Postal Service said it had submitted a notice to implement temporary price increases to cover extra fees during the holiday season.
But Amazon's large share of the e-commerce market has made seller fees and their recurring rises controversial. Critics say the company's excessive fees could keep merchants out of the market.
"Companies with monopoly power tend to raise prices, and that's what we're seeing here," said Amazon critic and anti-monopoly group Institute for Local said Stacy Mitchell, co-director of Self-Reliance. "Amazon's dominance of the online market means that small businesses have little choice but to pay," said Brian Olsavsky, Amazon's chief financial officer, last month. said in a conference call with media that third-party sellers accounted for 57% of total units sold on Amazon in the three months ending June 30. history.
Total revenue collected by Amazon from third-party sellers increased 13% year-over-year, according to the Seattle-based company's second-quarter earnings report. decreased his 4%.
