Ecommerce Morning Brief: Meta Opens Muse Agent to SMBs; Amazon Fall Promo Sees 68% of Items Under $20

Item 1: Taobao Flash Sale New Rules: User Violations May Lead to Action Against Associated Accounts

Taobao Flash Sale recently revised its platform rules, clarifying that when a user violates regulations, in addition to the current account, their associated accounts may also be subject to action. The new rules were announced on October 2 and take effect on October 9. Associated accounts refer to all accounts registered, controlled, or used by the same user. The platform will make comprehensive assessments based on factors such as phone numbers, recipient information, payment details, and device information, where identical or similar information may lead to identification. The scope of violations has also expanded: the original rule of "placing a large number of orders without payment in a short period" is now explicitly defined as a violation whether committed through one or multiple accounts. Malicious mass registration and buying/selling of accounts are also included. Penalties include warnings, identity verification, login restrictions, restrictions on user behavior, blocking reviews with scores not counted, and recovering or restricting the use of improperly obtained benefits. The platform also reserves the right to pursue legal responsibility in accordance with laws and regulations.

Item 2: FENDI Pop-Up Store Launches on Tmall with Global Exclusive Debut of Croissant Handbag

Luxury brand FENDI's official pop-up store has launched on Tmall, featuring the global exclusive debut of the Croissant handbag. This marks the brand's first foray into a Chinese e-commerce platform via a pop-up store format. Tmall Luxury has already attracted over 200 luxury brands to open official stores, making it the first e-commerce platform in China to bring together the five major luxury groups: LVMH, Kering, Richemont, Chanel, and Hermès.

Item 3: Alipay: Spending by Inbound Tourists During National Day Holiday Up Nearly 50% Year-on-Year

The latest data disclosed by Alipay for the dual holidays shows that spending by inbound tourists via "external card internal binding" and Alipay's "external wallet internal use" increased nearly 50% year-on-year, with a travel peak occurring on the fourth day of the holiday. By source region, Hong Kong (China), Kazakhstan, Taiwan (China), Malaysia, and South Korea ranked in the top five for inbound spending. With the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday adjacent this year, the popularity of foreign tourists visiting China has risen significantly.

Item 4: JD Logistics: Parcel Volumes from Airports and Cultural Tourism Sites Continue to Rise During National Day

During the holiday, JD Logistics saw sustained growth in parcel volumes from airports and cultural tourism sites. The company has front-loaded its delivery services to travel scenarios such as airports, scenic spots, hotels, and specialty streets, helping tourists travel light on their return journeys. This year, JD Logistics partnered for the first time with tourism authorities from seven regions including Chongqing, Qinghai, Hunan, Hebei, Hinggan League, Guilin, and Weihai. During the National Day period, parcel volumes in Chongqing increased by 50% year-on-year.

Item 5: MINISO: YOYO's GMV Exceeds 1 Billion Yuan in First Three Quarters

According to MINISO, as of October 1, 2026, the GMV of its first proprietary artist IP "YOYO" surpassed 1 billion yuan in the first three quarters, setting a new record for the fastest IP growth globally.

Item 6: HLA Announces Interim Dividend Plan, Planning Total Cash Payout of 1.297 Billion Yuan

HLA has announced its interim profit distribution plan for 2026, intending to distribute a total cash dividend of 1.297 billion yuan, with a per-share dividend of 0.27 yuan, to be paid out on October 14. This dividend covers all shareholders, with differentiated tax rates applied based on the duration of shareholding.

Item 7: Amazon Fall Promo Average Order Value $48.78, with 68% of Items Priced Below $20

Statistics show that during Amazon's fall Prime event in 2026, shoppers' average order value was $48.78, higher than the $46.89 seen during July's Prime Day. However, average spending per item was only $23.35, with 68% of items priced below $20, indicating a clear shift toward low-priced, small-ticket purchases. Household spending on the first day of the promo declined 22% year-on-year, from $106.41 to $86.98, reflecting a pattern of decent order volumes but lower average order values and more cautious consumption.

Item 8: Amazon Kicks Off New Round of Layoffs Across Multiple Teams, Affecting India and UK

According to Amazon employees, the company has initiated a new round of layoffs across several business units, with a number of staff posting on internal Slack channels that they had received notifications of job elimination. The layoffs cover customer service, platform support, and engineering roles in Amazon's retail business, also affecting teams in India and the UK. Amazon has not yet publicly responded.

Item 9: Meta Opens Muse AI Agent to Small and Medium Businesses, Integrates with Shopify and Other Tools

Meta recently announced the launch of its Muse AI agent service for small and medium-sized businesses. Merchants can connect dozens of tools such as Shopify, Stripe, Klaviyo, Canva, Intuit QuickBooks, Notion, Slack, as well as Facebook Pages, Instagram professional accounts, and Meta ad accounts. The AI handles comprehensive sales and advertising analysis, annual growth plans, weekly marketing plans, monthly financial reviews, and identification of abnormal spending. Sensitive operations such as publishing content, sending messages, and financial disbursements require merchant approval. The service was released on September 29, offers basic features for free, and is currently available in the US and Canada.

Item 10: UK Retailer Currys Officially Joins TikTok Shop to Enhance Omnichannel Strategy

UK electronics retailer Currys has officially joined TikTok Shop, initially listing products in categories such as health and beauty, coffee equipment, seasonal items, and audio devices. Users can make purchases directly within the app while watching short videos, live streams, or browsing creator content. Currys' official TikTok account has accumulated over 10 million likes. The company plans to host regular live shopping events. Currently, TikTok has over 30 million monthly active users in the UK, with nearly a quarter of millennials making at least one social commerce purchase per month, and 44% of UK internet users have made a purchase directly on TikTok.

Item 11: Pop Mart Adds 14 New Stores in September, with Europe and the US Accounting for Over 80%

Channel monitoring data shows that Pop Mart opened 14 new overseas stores in September 2026, with a combined 12 new stores in the US and Europe, representing over 80% of the month's total overseas additions. As of the end of September, its overseas store count (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) reached 262, with 77 net new stores opened since the beginning of 2026. However, sales performance is under significant pressure: TikTok channel GMV totaled 30.56 million yuan in September, down 77% year-on-year, with the US region contributing 16.83 million yuan, down 82%. Third-quarter TikTok channel GMV was 90.67 million yuan, down 74% year-on-year. On Douyin, its three official accounts generated 87.54 million yuan in GMV for September, down 2.7% month-on-month.

Item 12: Low-Value Parcel Volumes Halve: How Cross-Border Direct Shipping Survives After EU Tariff Reform

Since July 1, the EU has removed the tariff exemption for imported parcels valued at no more than 150 euros, imposing a fixed tariff of 3 euros based on tariff classification, with an additional processing fee of about 2 euros for small parcels starting in November. Customs data show that in Belgium, the number of parcels entering under low-value simplified declarations in July decreased by 53% year-on-year, while the volume of fully standard declared shipments surged by 102%, with the average item price rising from 5.73 euros to 10.85 euros. As of August, air freight export volumes for e-commerce from China to Europe fell by 40% year-on-year. Industry insiders estimate that in the future, about 70% of volumes will be handled by overseas warehouses, with 30% continuing as direct shipping. Sellers' marketing logic is also shifting from "buy A, get B" to encouraging repeat purchases of the same product to spread the per-item tariff burden.

That's all for today's morning brief. For more e-commerce knowledge, stay tuned to Ebrun audio updates.

This article was originally published on the Ebrun Power official website.