Amazon, the e-commerce retailer, backed down from potentially displaying “import charges” on its websites after President Donald Trump called founder Jeff Bezos on Tuesday morning to complain.
A source familiar with the phone call told the Washington Examiner that Trump and Bezos spoke after the president was informed about a report from Punchbowl News that Amazon would display the increased prices due to tariffs.
Trump paused the “Liberation Day” tariffs on most U.S. trade partners for 90 days, but the reprieve does not apply to China, which still faces a 145% tariff.
Amazon’s increased charges would be displayed “right next to the product’s total listed price,” according to the outlet. Other discount e-commerce businesses, such as Temu and Shein, have already increased prices due to the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs.
“Of course he was pissed,” one senior official told CNN. “Why should a multibillion-dollar company pass off costs to consumers?”
A source familiar with the situation told the Washington Examiner that the two leaders had a mature conversation, which eventually led to Amazon clarifying that the “import charges” display wouldn’t happen.
“The team that runs our ultra-low-cost Amazon Haul store considered the idea of listing import charges on certain products. This was never approved and is not going to happen,” Tim Doyle, an Amazon spokesman, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt blasted Amazon’s alleged actions during a Tuesday morning press briefing.
“This is a hostile and political act by Amazon,” Leavitt said. “Why didn’t Amazon do this when the Biden administration takes inflation to the highest level in 40 years?”
“And I would also add that it’s not a surprise, because as Reuters recently wrote, Amazon has partnered with a Chinese propaganda arm,” Leavitt continued. “So this is another reason why Americans should buy American.”
Leavitt’s comments were in reference to a 2021 report from Reuters that Amazon previously marketed “President Xi Jinping’s speeches and writings on its Chinese website.”
Bezos has cultivated a stronger relationship with Trump during the president’s second administration. Amazon donated a million dollars to Trump’s inauguration committee and was a guest during the Jan. 20 swearing-in ceremony. Bezos intervened and blocked the opinion section of the Washington Post, which he owns, from endorsing former Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2024 campaign.
