STU Supply Chain - Global Logistics and International Shipping

If you ship anything from China to the US via FedEx — stop scrolling. You need to see this. FedEx just cranked up their International Priority demand surcharge from China to the US from $0.35/lb to $0.91/lb . That's a 160% increase . Not a typo. A 10kg Priority package that used to cost $7.72 in surcharges now costs **$20.06**. That's an extra $12.35 per package. Doesn't sound like much until you multiply by 100 packages — that's **$1,235 more** in just this one fee alone. $1,235 is basically the product cost of a whole 10kg shipment for a lot of categories. The worst part? This isn't some new fee they're testing. It's a peak season surcharge that runs from late September all the way through January 17, 2027 — nearly four months, covering the entire Q4 holiday season and beyond. Let me break down what's actually happening and what you can do about it. The Numbers: How Much More You're Actually Paying FedEx updated their rates on September 4th, and ...

  Let me cut straight to it: shipping costs from China to the US are insane right now. If you're an Amazon seller or importer trying to plan your Q4 inventory, you've probably already stared at a freight quote and thought, "Wait, is that per CONTAINER?!" Yes. Yes it is. I've been sourcing and shipping from China for over 7 years, and I've never seen rates climb this fast outside of the 2021 pandemic peak. Eight straight weeks of increases. US East Coast breaking $10,000/FEU. We're now within spitting distance of the all-time high. In this post, I'll share the actual carrier rates I'm seeing right now (early October 2026), explain why things got so expensive so fast, and walk through what my team is doing about it — including the route hack that's saving us money on East Coast shipments. The Numbers: Real Carrier Rates (Oct 1-14, 2026) I pulled these directly from my forwarder's booking platform earlier this week. These are port-to-port spot...