Amazon Hits Sellers with 3.5% Fuel and Logistics Surcharge as Iran War Drives Up Energy Costs

Amazon has imposed a 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge on US and Canadian sellers using its fulfillment services, the company said Wednesday, citing rising global energy costs driven by the ongoing Iran war, TechCrunch reported. The surcharge applies to fulfillment fees for sellers using Fulfillment by Amazon, the service through which sellers store inventory in Amazon warehouses and have orders picked, packed, and shipped by Amazon. It represents a direct pass-through of elevated fuel and logistics costs to the more than two million third-party sellers who rely on Amazon's fulfillment network. Amazon called the surcharge "temporary" but declined to specify when it would be removed or what conditions would trigger its removal, leaving sellers uncertain about how long the additional cost will affect their margins. For sellers with thin margins on consumer goods, a 3.5% surcharge on already-substantial fulfillment fees can meaningfully affect profitability. Many Amazon sellers operate at margins in the 10 to 20 percent range, making a fulfillment cost increase of this magnitude a significant operating line item. The Iran war, which began in early 2026, has disrupted global oil markets and driven up fuel prices worldwide. Shipping and logistics companies including FedEx and UPS have also implemented fuel surcharges, but Amazon's scale and the dependency of its seller ecosystem on FBA makes its surcharge particularly consequential for the e-commerce supply chain. Some sellers are expected to pass the surcharge along to consumers through price increases, while others may absorb the cost temporarily or seek to reduce their reliance on FBA fulfillment by handling more orders in-house.