Have you noted that since July 1, 2026, the European Union has abolished the long-standing €150 customs duty exemption, replacing it with a flat €3 customs duty per item on all low-value e-commerce goods imported from outside the EU. The duty is levied based on the tariff classification rather than the parcel itself (e.g., ordering three distinct types of items incurs a €9 duty). This temporary measure runs until July 1, 2028, pending the rollout of the comprehensive EU Customs Data Hub.
The regulation is designed to level the playing field for local European businesses facing intense competition from overseas e-commerce, and it ensures that all incoming goods comply with safety and declaration standards.
This flat duty is a separate charge from a potential handling fee to cover customs processing, which will be implemented later in 2026.
For further actionable details on how the EU Commission calculates this rate and its specific application, review the official Questions and answers on €3 customs duty – European Commission.
”When we had signed up Gemini in the beginning of 2025, we knew that it was going to be a phenomenal ramp up,” says Mark Hardiman, chief executive at Malaysia’s biggest single port, Tanjung Pelepas, with reference to the Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd container alliance.
The port, with a current capacity at 15m teu, soon to be expanded to 16m containers, is strategically located at one of the world’s most critical waterways, the Strait of Malacca.
In fact, only 22 km by car from Singapore’s new mega port Tuas being inaugurated stepwise, with phase 1 already operational.
Tanjung Pelepas, the joint venture port owned by Malaysian MMC Group and APM Terminals with 70% and 30%, respectively, has taken a large leap forward by accommodating the majority of Gemini’s business in the Straits.
Appointed key port in Gemini Cooperation’s so-called hub-and-spoke model, it was clear that Tanjung Pelepas would benefit a lot from the East-West traffic brought by the Danish-German container alliance.
On the downside, Maersk’s former alliance partner, the Aponte family’s MSC, moved all its ocean-going activities to Singapore, leaving only intra-Asian traffic around the corner, in the Malaysian port.
”In 2024, we were the first single port in Malaysia to do more than 12 million teus. And then we jumped right up to 14 million in 2025 when the switch was turned. Phase out of 2M. And then the phase in of Gemini,” Mark Hardiman says and continues:
”Hapag-Lloyd was relatively new to us. We had very, very small volumes from them before Gemini. But, obviously, now it is our second biggest customer after Maersk. Without Gemini, we would probably have done 11.5m or 12m TEUs, but we did 14m in 2025, achieved on the very last day of the year.”
Read more; Here
Source:ShippingWatch
A.P. Moller – Maersk has announced the opening in late August of a new fulfillment hub in Hopedale, Massachusetts, a $100 million investment that will create approximately 1,000 jobs and expand the company’s logistics footprint in the Northeast. The 617,000-square-foot facility will support a major e-commerce customer and enhance Maersk’s ability to deliver faster, more reliable fulfillment services to consumers across the region.
The facility will begin operations in late August and serves as a major addition to Maersk’s North American Contract Logistics network. Designed to support high-volume fulfillment operations, the site expands Maersk’s ability to help customers meet growing consumer expectations for faster, more reliable delivery.
A.P. Moller – Maersk has announced the opening in late August of a new fulfillment hub in Hopedale, Massachusetts, a $100 million investment that will create approximately 1,000 jobs and expand the company’s logistics footprint in the Northeast. The 617,000-square-foot facility will support a major e-commerce customer and enhance Maersk’s ability to deliver faster, more reliable fulfillment services to consumers across the region.
The facility will begin operations in late August and serves as a major addition to Maersk’s North American Contract Logistics network. Designed to support high-volume fulfillment operations, the site expands Maersk’s ability to help customers meet growing consumer expectations for faster, more reliable delivery.
The Hopedale facility will serve a single large-scale e-commerce customer and is expected to process up to 330,000 units per day at peak capacity. Equipped with advanced conveyor and sortation technology, the operation will support high-volume fulfillment and delivery across the Northeast region while helping ensure speed, reliability and scalability during periods of peak demand.
In addition to strengthening regional supply chain infrastructure, the facility will deliver a significant economic benefit to the local community. Hiring is currently underway for a wide range of leadership, operations and support roles.
The Hopedale facility supports Maersk’s strategy of building integrated logistics solutions that connect transportation, warehousing, fulfillment and distribution into a seamless customer experience. As supply chains continue to evolve, investments like Hopedale help ensure customers can scale operations while maintaining speed, efficiency and reliability.
You must be logged in to post a comment.