President Donald Trump met with executives from Walmart and other big box retailers on Monday as his devastating tariffs sent the stock market tumbling yet again.
Trump sat down with the CEOs of Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and Lowe’s at the White House, an administration official told the Daily Beast. Bloomberg first reported the meeting earlier on Monday.
“We had a productive meeting with President Trump and his team and appreciated the opportunity to share our insights,” a Walmart spokesperson said in a statement. CEO Doug McMillon represented the company.
A Home Depot spokesperson said the meeting was “informative and constructive,” adding that the company was looking forward to “continuing the dialogue” with the Trump administration.
Target and Lowe’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The meeting took place amid continuing uncertainty over Trump’s steep tariffs, which threaten the import-dependent models of major retailers. Although the administration paused its levies on most countries for 90 days, the 145 percent tariff on China remains in effect.
Though Trump has largely remained defiant about his tariffs, he has repeatedly called on the Fed to slash interest rates to offset the impact of his levies.
On Monday morning, Trump also leveled a fresh round of criticism at Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, along with a not-so-veiled threat to seek his ouster if he did not lower interest rates.
“There can be a SLOWING of the economy unless Mr. Too Late, a major loser, lowers interest rates, NOW,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Powell has always been ‘To Late [sic],’ except when it came to the Election period when he lowered in order to help Sleepy Joe Biden, later Kamala, get elected. How did that work out?”
Following the remarks, the stock market cratered once again.
The Dow fell 972 points, or 2.48 percent, the S&P dropped 2.36 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite shed 2.55 percent Monday afternoon.
Walmart stock slid 0.89 percent, Home Depot lost 2.30 percent, and Lowe’s sank 2.85 percent.
Target stock, on the other hand, went up by 0.72 percent.
Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey told investors earlier this month that more than two-thirds of the company’s products in the U.S. are made, grown, or assembled domestically. One-third come from all over the globe, mainly from China and Mexico.
Executives of the world’s largest retailer vowed to keep prices low even amid tariff uncertainty.
“We’re not unfamiliar with tariffs over time,” McMillon, the CEO, said. “While in the short term we are not immune to some of the effects… we are positioned to play offense.”
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