An Amazon employee works to fulfill same-day orders during Cyber Monday, one of the company’s busiest days, at an Amazon fulfillment center in Orlando, Florida, on December 2, 2024.
Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo getty images
Amazon Iran is adding a 3.5% “fuel and logistics-related surcharge” to the fees it collects from third-party sellers using its fulfillment services, pushing up oil prices as the war in Iran reaches its fifth week.
The surcharge will go into effect April 17 for sellers in the US and Canada, the company wrote in a note to sellers on Thursday, seen by CNBC.
“Increased costs in fulfillment and logistics have increased the cost of operations across the industry,” Amazon wrote. “We have absorbed these increased costs so far. However, similar to other major carriers, when costs remain high, we apply a temporary surcharge to our fulfillment fees to recover a portion of the actual cost increases.”
Amazon spokeswoman Ashley Wanisek said in a statement that the surcharge is “meaningfully lower” than levies imposed by other major carriers.
“We are committed to the success of our sales partners and maintaining a wide selection and low prices for our customers,” Vanisek said in a statement.
Oil prices jumped on Thursday as investors weighed how long the conflict in the Middle East would block crude shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. June futures for international benchmark Brent crude rose more than 6% to $107.35 a barrel.
Amazon, which hosts nearly two million sellers on its marketplace, is not the only company struggling with rising oil prices. Last month, the US Postal Service Said It plans to impose a fuel surcharge on packages on April 26, “to better align its cost of transportation with the market.”
major shipping carriers Above And FedEx, Higher fuel surcharges were also imposed since the beginning of the Iran War.
The company said Amazon’s surcharge will be calculated based on sellers’ fulfillment fees, not the selling price of their items. Vanicek said the levy is “meaningfully lower” than surcharges implemented by other major carriers.
The company said the surcharge is the equivalent of an additional 17 cents per unit for Fulfillment by Amazon Shipments, though it varies depending on the size and dimensions of the item.
FBA refers to a widely used service of Amazon where it handles the process of picking, packing, and shipping items. Most third-party sellers Use FBA as your fulfillment method for products sold on Amazon.
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