The e-commerce giant said the new fee will take effect on April 28 and is being introduced due to a significant deterioration in inflation in recent months.
“We expected a return to normal in 2022 as Covid-19 restrictions eased around the world, but fuel and inflation created further challenges,” Amazon said in a memo shared with CNN by the company. “It is not clear whether these inflationary costs will increase or decrease, and how long they will persist.”
Increasing Amazon merchant fees could lead to higher costs for consumers as businesses seek to pass on rising costs to their customers.
Amazon said in its memorandum that the company has tried to minimize the impact of inflation.
“Like many others, we have experienced significant cost increases and have covered them where possible to reduce the impact on our channel partners,” Amazon said in a statement. “When we raised fees, we were focused on addressing recurring costs and ensuring that our fees are competitive with those charged by other service providers.”