Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy confirmed that U.S. import levies announced by the Trump administration are now incrementally reflected in the prices of certain items sold on Amazon’s platform. While both the company and many third-party merchants had front-loaded purchases of inventory last year to shield consumers from added expenses, those reserves largely depleted by autumn. As a result, an increasing share of sellers have started transferring higher tariff outlays to shoppers, with others electing to absorb part or all of the burden to sustain demand.

Jassy highlighted that third-party merchants initially attempted to smooth the tariff impact by stockpiling goods ahead of anticipated rate increases, but the majority of that inventory was exhausted by late 2019. In practice, roughly one in four top-selling merchants on Amazon have adjusted their price schedules upward in recent weeks, while another third maintain current prices and accept compressed margins. The remaining merchants are employing hybrid approaches—raising prices on select categories, such as consumer electronics and home goods, while absorbing costs on high-volume items to preserve sales velocity.