U.S. shoppers' orders canceled as world shuts down some American-bound shipments

U.S. shoppers ordering smaller goods from abroad are being met with waves of cancellation notices ahead of a key trade rule change ordered by the Trump administration.

U.S. shoppers ordering smaller goods from abroad are being met with waves of cancellation notices ahead of a key trade rule change ordered by the Trump administration.

On Friday, the United States will end the nearly century-old "de minimis" exemption, which allowed items worth less than $800 to be shipped to the country duty-free, or without having to pay any tariffs.

In advance of the official termination date for the exemption, many European nations, alongside Australia, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and New Zealand, have announced suspensions of U.S.-bound shipments.

Mexico's postal service announced Thursday it was suspending package deliveries to the United States because of the pending changes.

U.S. e-commerce hubs have been posting notices warning customers about shipping disruptions. Last week, Etsy announced it would no longer process purchases for goods sent via Australia Post, Canada Post and the United Kingdom’s Evri and Royal Mail services in anticipation of those firms' shutting down U.S. deliveries.