On March 2, Bloomberg reported that after the U.S.-led bombing campaign against Iran disrupted major air and sea routes, major e-commerce platforms warned that delivery times for goods to the Middle East would be extended. The Middle East is one of the fastest-growing markets for the e-commerce industry, and air strikes will threaten supplies in the region.
Estimated delivery times for goods shipped by major Chinese online retailers to consumers in the Middle East have been significantly extended by several days.According to data from logistics query platform 17Track, Pinduoduo’s cross-border e-commerce platform Temu currently expects delivery time to be up to 20 days, compared with about 15 days previously. Shein has extended the estimated delivery time from the previous 5 to 8 days to 8 to 10 days.
Some items on Amazon's website showed an estimated delivery time of 45 days on Monday, about 10 days longer than before the conflict.
E-commerce platforms extend delivery time
Not only that, continued attacks may lead to further extensions of waiting times for consumers. Two Chinese merchants that mainly sell goods through Amazon, Xiyin and Temu said they have suspended plans to ship new inventory from China to the Middle East until the situation stabilizes.Freight forwarders have warned they could double shipping costs and delivery times if disruptions to routes continue.
As of press time, Amazon, Xiyin and Temu have not commented on this.