PDD’s Temu app tops U.S. iOS downloads for second year running amid greater scrutiny of China companies

Temu, the favored e-commerce app owned by China’s PDD Holdings, topped Apple’s record of probably the most downloaded free apps on its U.S. iOS retailer for the second 12 months operating, highlighting the large success that Chinese language apps are having fun with on the earth’s largest shopper market.

ByteDance’s TikTok got here in third within the rating regardless of doubts over its potential to proceed working within the U.S., whereas Temu-competitor and fast-fashion large Shein got here in at quantity 12.

Apple’s iOS accounts for over 56% of U.S. cell phone market, based on information from StatCounter.

Temu, which ships low-cost items from China, first entered the U.S. market in 2022. It has taken the market by storm, placing strain on incumbent heavyweight Amazon.

The Chinese language firm, nevertheless, faces elevated scrutiny from U.S. officers, and dangers posed by tariffs which the incoming Trump administration has promised to boost.

Because the likes of Temu and Shein appeal to American customers with low-cost items and aggressive promoting, they’ve additionally caught the eye of Washington. 

In September, the Biden administration introduced a brand new proposal aimed toward blocking the “overuse and abuse” of the long-standing “de minimis” provision by firms corresponding to Shein and Temu. The supply permits shipments valued beneath $800 sure import responsibility exemptions. 

If Temu and Shein have been to lose their de minimis exemption, it may push up costs and cut back the Chinese language firms’ competitiveness, specialists have advised CNBC.

Donald Trump’s impending return to the White Home provides one other layer of uncertainty because the president-elect made curbing imports from China a serious focus of his marketing campaign. Trump has proposed tariffs as excessive as 60% to 100% on items from China, though it’s unclear whether or not he’ll perform his menace.

U.S. officers are usually not the one ones involved about Chinese language imports flooding their home markets.

In Southeast Asia, Vietnam and Indonesia have imposed a spread of anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese language items, whereas Thailand not too long ago introduced measures to watch low-cost imports. Earlier this month, Vietnam banned Temu from working within the nation simply two months after the Chinese language firm arrange an area presence.

In a world outlook report launched Friday, Nomura mentioned that its U.S. economics workforce expects modifications to the de minimis rule to be a key commerce precedence for the Trump administration, maybe second solely to mountain climbing tariffs. 

“This represents one other main draw back danger to China’s exports to the U.S. in 2025,” the report mentioned.

Nomura estimates a U.S. ban on all de minimis imports from China may cut back the latter’s annual export progress by 1.3% and drag GDP progress down by 0.2%.