Temu Faces New EU Investigation Into ‘Problematic’ Sale Practices

The European Union (EU) has told Chinese online retailer Temu to put an end to its “problematic” commercial practices or risk facing penalties, the 27-nation bloc’s executive arm said on Nov. 8. The European Commission’s move follows the launch of an investigation into whether Temu adequately prevented the sale of illegal products on its platform, adding to the regulatory hurdles it’s already grappling with in the EU. In an online statement, the Commission listed the specific commercial activities that it considers could mislead consumers and infringe upon EU laws. The alleged problematic practices include showing non-existent discounts, using tactics like fake countdown timers or limited stocks to pressure users into making quick purchases, displaying partial or wrong information about consumers’ rights to return or refunds, and lacking terms to verify the authenticity of product reviews. The Commission noted that national regulators have found reviews they suspected to be fake....