US President again attacks Amazon

Washington, April 1: US President Dold Trump attacked online retail giant Amazon for a second time in a week, accusing the company of scamming US Postal Service (USPS) over cheaper shipping costs. “While we are on the subject, it is reported that the US Post Office will lose $1.50 on average for each package it delivers for Amazon. That amounts to billions of dollars,” Trump tweeted on Saturday. “The failing N.Y. Times reports that ‘the size of the company’s lobbying staff has ballooned’, and that does not include the fake Washington Post, which is used as a ‘lobbyist’ and should so register. “If the P.O. ‘increased its parcel rates, Amazon’s shipping costs would rise by $2.6 Billion.’ This Post Office scam must stop,” he added, urging the retail giant to pay real costs and taxes. It would cost Amazon $1.46 more to ship an average package through USPS if costs were “fairly allocated”, according to a Citigroup alysis released last year. The latest attack comes two days after Trump claimed that Amazon’s shipping practices have negatively impacted retailers and local governments. Trump has been regularly attacking the Washington Post, which is owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

But the White House said on Wednesday that the administration currently proposes no specific policies to regulate the online retail giant. (IANS)