Something that’s been bugging my lately which is not entirely eBay’s fault, is the gigantic number of Chinese sellers that have flooded onto eBay selling everything imaginable.
I bought something for $12 from one of those sellers, and that included shipping from China to my door, with end-to-end tracking.
The only comparable shipping service that the USPS offers is First Class International, which offers NO tracking at all, and costs about $9 for a similar sized package.
If you want tracking, the price jumps up to close to $40.
And, of course, because of eBay’s rules, it’s a “transaction defect” if you ship without tracking.
I have no doubt that the Chinese government is providing ultra cheap shipping to ensure that their sellers have easy access to foreign markets.
The USPS and eBay, in partnership, are doing the opposite.
Oh, it gets even worse than that... Chinese sellers ONLY pay transaction fees, no listing fees. Just offering an item, an American seller is at a deficit. Additionally, almost every Chinese seller fakes the value for customs, thus buyers don’t have to pay duties - particularly important for UK and EU buyers, where duties can be as much as 40% of the value of the item.