Starting July 29, the U.S. scrapped its duty-free allowance for small parcels valued under USD 800 (about KRW 1.11M). → U.S. customers who once bought from Korean platforms without paying import duties are now subject to a 15% tariff. In response, major Korean retailers—Olive Young, Musinsa Global, and Market Kurly—are updating their systems so that U.S. customers pay the tariff upfront at checkout rather than upon delivery. From the shopper’s perspective, K-product prices have effectively gone up. Retailers say they’re watching U.S. consumer behavior closely, with concerns that reduced price competitiveness could slow the growth of cross-border direct sales—especially for K-beauty. 📊 By the numbers (Statistics Korea, Q2 2024) - Total overseas direct sales: KRW 738.8B (+7.5% YoY) - U.S.: KRW 138.2B (19%) → 3rd largest after China (KRW 347.9B, 47%) and Japan (KRW 176.8B, 24%) For now, industry players say it’s too early to gauge the full impact and will continue to monitor market ...