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Amazon Adds 3.5% Surcharge as War Dri Up Fuel Prices
Charge Is Effective April 17 on Third-Party Sellers
NEW YORK — Amazon is slapping a 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge on third-party sellers using its platform starting later this month amid a spike in fuel prices since the war in Iran started.
The temporary charge is effective April 17 for many of the sellers who use Amazon’s fulfillment services, the online behemoth confirmed to The Associated Press in an email Thursday.
“Elevated costs in fuel and logistics have increased the cost of operating across the industry,” Amazon said in the emailed statement.
The Seattle-based company said it has absorbed these increases so far but similar to other major carriers, when costs remain elevated, it implements temporary surcharges to partially recover these costs. It noted the charge is “meaningfully” lower than surcharges applied by other major carriers.
“We remain committed to our selling partners’ success and to maintaining broad selection and low prices for customers,” Amazon added.
Amazon’s fuel and logistics-related surcharge will apply to U.S. and Canadian sellers using its Fulfillment by Amazon option. Starting May 2, the surcharge will take effect with sellers using the Buy with Prime and Multi-Channel Fulfillment options.
Amazon joins a growing list of carriers imposing surcharges to recoup rising energy costs as the Iran war drags on.
UPS and FedEx have increased their fuel surcharges. The United States Postal Service announced last week it was imposing an 8% fuel surcharge that would apply to packages to be shipped starting April 26. The surcharge would remain in place until Jan. 17 2027, it said.
Amazon ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies in North America, No. 15 on the TT Top 100 list of the largest private carriers and No. 1 on the TT Top 50 list of the largest global freight companies.
FedEx ranks No. 2 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America and No. 3 on the global freight list. FedEx Logistics ranks No. 43 on the logistics list.
USPS ranks No. 4 on the global freight list.
