The Shein $99 million loss for the first quarter of the year marks a sharp reversal from a year earlier, as the fast-fashion retailer’s sales slowed following US President Donald Trump’s removal of a duty exemption on small packages, according to a BBC report. The setback also comes amid continued uncertainty over the wider tit-for-tat tariff dispute between the US and China, which remains paused, according to the BBC.
Shein, which is headquartered in Singapore but was founded in China, said it lost $99 million in the first three months of the year, compared with a net income of $395 million in the same period a year earlier, the BBC reported. The disclosure came as part of the company’s preparations for a planned stock market listing in Hong Kong, though the filing did not detail the size, timetable or pricing of the offering.
In its filing, Shein said it was “pursuing a wide range of options, including increasing our prices in the US market to offset a portion of the increased costs” in response to the higher duties and taxes. The company also said the Iran war had weighed on demand, raised costs and delayed deliveries in some markets.
Part of the quarterly loss reflected a separate paper loss of $328 million tied to an accounting change for special investor shares, which can later convert into ordinary stock and whose value can shift before a listing takes place, according to the filing.
The filing also showed that Shein had 281 million active customers in the year to the end of March 2026, an increase of more than 16% from a year earlier, with those customers placing more than one billion orders combined during the period.
On 10 July, China’s Securities Regulatory Commission approved Shein’s plan for a Hong Kong share sale, following earlier failed attempts to list the company in New York and London. The Hong Kong listing is expected to take place in the coming months, though no exact date has been confirmed.
The figures reflect the impact of a Trump-signed executive order that ended a global tariff exemption widely used by US shoppers buying low-cost goods online. The order, which took effect on 29 August 2025, expanded an earlier measure that had specifically targeted cheap products from China and Hong Kong to cover the rest of the world, according to the BBC.
The so-called de minimis exemption had allowed goods valued at $800 or less to enter the United States without incurring tariffs, a rule that US consumers relied on to buy inexpensive goods from online retailers including Shein and Temu. The White House said the global exemption had been used to “evade tariffs and funnel deadly synthetic opioids” into the country.
Shein said the removal of the exemption has had an adverse effect on its US sales and on the overall growth of its net revenues. Earlier in July, the European Union separately imposed a €3 levy on low-value e-commerce imports, a measure the trading bloc has said is aimed at curbing unfair competition from Chinese online retailers operating in the EU market.
The tariff and trade pressures facing global consumer brands have prompted companies across sectors to adjust their strategies, a trend also seen in the automotive industry, including Ford’s recent push into vehicle customization and limited-edition offerings. For Shein, the company’s next steps remain tied to its planned Hong Kong listing, with investors likely to watch closely for further detail on pricing, timing and the broader impact of tariffs on its US business in the coming months. The company has not disclosed when further financial results or listing details will be released.
I am Rukaiya Kadiwala, an experienced News Content Writer with 6+ years of expertise in hospitality, travel, hotel, restaurant, business, and lifestyle news. Skilled in writing, research, fact-checking, headline creation, and digital publishing, I create accurate, engaging, and high-quality content that informs and attracts readers worldwide.
