Walmart, America’s largest retailer, has warned that consumers might start feeling the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs later this month, as the company’s chief financial officer John David Rainey said that tariffs are “still too high.”
“We’re wired for everyday low prices, but the magnitude of these increases is more than any retailer can absorb,” Rainey told CNBC in an interview on Thursday. “It’s more than any supplier can absorb. And so I’m concerned that [consumers are] going to start seeing higher prices. You’ll begin to see that, likely towards the tail end of this month, and then certainly much more in June.”
Trump’s tariffs rocked the stock market in April, and Walmart was not exempt from feeling the impact.
In a sign of easing tensions in the trade war, on Monday, Trump announced a broad trade agreement with China, lowering U.S. import taxes on goods coming from China from 145% down to 30% for an initial 90-day period.
Despite this shift, Walmart is still feeling the pinch. However, the retailer’s net sales are set to increase 3.5% to 4.5% for the second quarter of the fiscal year.
Per CNBC, Walmart “declined to provide guidance for earnings per share or operating income growth because of fluctuating U.S. tariff policy.”
The impact of Trump’s initial “Liberation Day” tariffs were felt immediately, with some American firms canceling orders from China and postponing expansions that had been planned.
While the stock market reacted positively to Trump’s deal with China over the tariffs, the continuous reversals from the White House have confused consumers and businesses, leaving them little stability.
“[T]his is a little bit unprecedented in terms of the speed and magnitude in which the price increases are coming,” Rainey said.
Meanwhile, the potential price hikes from Walmart come as U.S. consumers contend with concerns over how Trump’s tariffs could hurt their wallets across multiple sectors—from groceries, to electronics, to automobiles.
Grocery prices have specifically been a concern for U.S. shoppers, after egg prices continued to rise in March, brought about in part by a severe bird flu outbreak. Though April saw a dip in the price of eggs, the effects of the formerly record-high prices are likely still being felt, marked by a significant drop in U.S. consumer sentiment.
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