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Investing.com -- Temu’s U.S. sales slump is worsening as the online marketplace sharply reduces its advertising aimed at American consumers, reflecting a change in strategy following President Donald Trump’s move to tighten trade rules.
Shares in Temu owner PDD Holdings (NASDAQ:PDD) slipped around 1% in premarket trading Friday.
Between May 11 and June 8, Temu’s weekly sales fell more than 25% compared to the same period last year, according to data from Bloomberg Second Measure, which tracks spending using credit and debit card transactions.
That contrasts with platforms like Shein, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Walmart (NYSE:WMT), which have returned to year-over-year growth since the U.S. and China reached a trade truce in mid-May.
The drop in sales has coincided with a sharp pullback in Temu’s marketing push. After a major campaign last year that included high-profile Super Bowl ads, the company has scaled back drastically.
Analytics firm AppGrowing Global reports that Temu, which once produced thousands of ads each day, is now creating only a handful—or none at all—on some days in June.
“Temu’s sales growth has always been glued to their aggressive advertisements,” said Wu Yanwei, chief content director at AppGrowing’s parent company, YouCloud.
“The abrupt slowdown in advertisement spending is likely turning its growth engines off” in the U.S., Wu added, noting that Temu is now directing ad budgets toward markets like Europe.
A Temu spokesperson declined to comment on specific sales or advertising figures but said the company is “working with local merchants across regions to deliver stable pricing to consumers.”
For years, platforms like Temu and Shein benefited from a tariff exemption on low-value packages, allowing them to ship low-cost goods to American shoppers without duties. That changed after Trump’s administration closed the loophole, reducing the price advantage these platforms once enjoyed.
Shein, however, appears to be weathering the shift more effectively. Bloomberg Second Measure data shows its U.S. sales returned to growth from June 1, posting single-digit increases in line with Walmart’s e-commerce trends.
Unlike Temu, Shein has kept its U.S. ad presence relatively steady, with AppGrowing Global noting that most days this year have seen anywhere from dozens to several hundred new commercials.
