Amazon bags $600 million Trump tariff refund: Will the e-commerce giant share the windfall with shoppers?
Amazon on Thursday said that it has received $600 million in tariff refunds after the US Supreme Court ruled that many of the import duties
Amazon on Thursday said that it has received $600 million in tariff refunds after the US Supreme Court ruled that many of the import duties imposed by President Donald Trump were unlawful. The e-commerce giant also said it intends to pass on a portion of those refunds to customers. The refunds stem from the Supreme Court’s February decision, striking down tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977. The ruling required the US government to reimburse companies for duties paid on imports that were subject to the invalidated tariffs. Also Read | Elon Musk rejects report of Tesla’s China business split plans “We are participating in the tariff refund process and, as I mentioned earlier, we received approximately $600 million in Q2,” Amazon Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky said.
Several major corporations, including Apple, Walmart, Costco, Home Depot and General Motors, have said they would seek refunds following the court's decision. In April, Trump told CNBC he would "remember" companies that chose not to pursue refunds after being asked whether some firms, including Amazon, might avoid doing so to stay in his good graces. Apple disclosed on Thursday that tariff refunds boosted its third-quarter earnings per share by 5%, or 11 cents. Consumers file class-action lawsuit Until now, Amazon had not publicly confirmed whether it planned to apply for the refunds. In May, a group of consumers filed a class-action lawsuit in a federal court in Seattle, alleging that Amazon should have sought the refunds and returned the savings to customers who paid higher prices because of the tariffs.
The lawsuit also claimed the company refrained from seeking refunds to "curry favour" with the Trump administration. Amazon had previously drawn criticism from the White House after reports emerged in April that it was considering displaying the cost of Trump's tariffs alongside certain products listed on its website. According to NBC News, Trump personally contacted Amazon founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos to express his displeasure over the proposal. Speaking on Thursday, Olsavsky said the company received only a "limited" refund because it had strategically ordered and stockpiled inventory ahead of the tariff increases, reducing its overall exposure. “Second, we are not the importer of record for the large majority of items sold in our store,” he said.
Many of Amazon’s third-party sellers, who rely on imported goods, were forced to raise prices after the tariffs took effect and have since filed their own refund claims. Independent sellers account for more than 60% of all products sold through Amazon’s online marketplace. Olsavsky added that Amazon plans to return a portion of the tariff refund money to customers, although he did not provide details on how or when those refunds would be distributed.
The BriefWire