Daily Cross-Border E-Commerce Briefing | June 24, 2025
1. Amazon Pledges £40 B to Expand UK Fulfillment & AI Infrastructure
- Amazon will pump £40 billion (≈ $54 billion) into Britain by 2028, including four
fully-robotic fulfillment centres in Teesside, Hull, Northampton and the East Midlands, plus new
delivery stations and an enlarged AWS generative-AI cluster. The plan adds 10,000+ jobs and doubles
small-parcel throughput, giving Shopify and WooCommerce merchants access to a denser “UK
dropshipping fulfillment warehouse” network with same-day or next-day cut-off times. For
cross-border sellers running DDP into the EU, the investment also promises lower return costs and
faster EU 27 re-exports via the Channel Tunnel.
Source: Reuters, Published on: June 24, 2025
2. Alibaba Folds Ele.me & Fliggy Into Core Commerce Amid ‘Instant Retail’ Surge
- In a “strategic upgrade,” Alibaba is merging food-delivery app Ele.me and travel unit Fliggy
into its main e-commerce division to battle China’s price war and push 30-to-60-minute “instant
retail” delivery. The revamp unifies inventory, payments and rider networks—meaning overseas brands
can pilot “ultra-fast dropshipping” to Chinese consumers from bonded warehouses, while also tapping
outbound tourist traffic when Fliggy promotions resume. For DTC brands testing the Chinese market,
integrated data from Alipay and Cainiao will make granular ad retargeting and real-time stock sync
simpler.
Source: Reuters, Published on: June 23, 2025
3. Prosus Eyes Early EU Green-Light for €4.1 B Just Eat Takeover
- Dutch tech investor Prosus told regulators it is “very confident” of swift antitrust clearance
for its €4.1 billion buyout of Just Eat Takeaway.com. If approved, the deal would forge Europe’s
fourth-largest food-delivery network—boosting last-mile density across Germany, France, the UK and
the Nordics. Independent sites selling perishables or FMCG via “same-day cross-border grocery
dropshipping” could gain access to 300,000+ active couriers and local pickup lockers, shortening
cold-chain transit and slashing refund rates.
Source: Reuters, Published on: June 24, 2025
4. FedEx Keeps International Fuel Surcharge at 31.8%, a 12-Month High
- FedEx’s weekly table shows the International Freight fuel surcharge locked at 31.8% for June
18-24—the steepest level since mid-2024—adding up to US $0.65 per lightweight parcel and squeezing
Shopify dropship margins. Because FedEx updates surcharges every Wednesday, merchants should
automate “FedEx fuel surcharge sync in Shopify Shipping Scripts” to avoid silent margin erosion and
cart-abandonment surprises.
Source: FedEx, Published on: June 24, 2025
5. UPS Raises Ground & Air Fuel Fees Effective June 23
- UPS has lifted its Ground Saver® and Domestic Air fuel surcharges by 75–100 basis points,
citing sustained diesel and jet-fuel inflation. WooCommerce sellers using “Real-Time UPS Rates” must
refresh zone charts and adjust free-shipping thresholds; otherwise, profit on sub-$50 AOV items can
disappear. Consider hybrid “UPS Mail Innovations + local 3PL” routing for low-urgency
SKUs.
Source: UPS, Published on: June 23, 2025
6. Google Ads Rolls Out ‘First-Order Promotions’ for Shopping Campaigns
- The new feature automatically surfaces exclusive coupons to first-time buyers inside Google
Shopping ads, letting DTC brands run “new-customer acquisition funnels” without extra feed columns.
Early testers report up to 18% lift in conversion rate and lower CPA under Performance Max. Pairing
the promo with detailed product-type attributes and “dropshipping SEO friendly titles” can improve
impression share for long-tail queries like “eco-friendly bamboo socks free first order”.
Source: Search Engine Land, Published on: June 23, 2025
7. Amazon’s Premium Beauty Push Aims to Offset 145% US Tariffs
- Amazon is spotlighting its invite-only Premium Beauty storefront—home to brands such as Estée
Lauder, Olaplex and Urban Decay—to cushion the blow from steep de-minimis tariffs. The category
logged a 20% YoY sales jump to US $15 billion, driven by lightweight, high-ticket items perfect for
“luxury beauty dropshipping” with lower shipping cost per dollar. Independent sellers can bundle
£30-plus skincare sets in gift-ready packaging to ride the margin wave during the upcoming four-day
Prime Day (July 8–11).
Source: Reuters, Published on: June 24, 2025
8. Strait of Hormuz Tension Doubles VLCC Freight Rates
- Ship-tracking data shows VLCCs Coswisdom Lake and South Loyalty making U-turns or pausing near
the Strait of Hormuz after U.S. strikes in Iran, slashing tanker traffic by 30% and pushing freight
to US $60,000 per day. With 20% of global oil and petrochemicals flowing through the strait,
“Middle-East trans-shipment dropshipping routes” face potential delays, extra insurance premiums and
higher bunker surcharges. Map out alternative Red-Sea or West-Med lanes for time-sensitive fashion
or electronics orders.
Source: Reuters, Published on: June 23, 2025
