Days after Walmart announced price hikes would be coming later this month due to tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, Trump said that Walmart should "eat" the costs.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, Trump said, "Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain. Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected. Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, 'EAT THE TARIFFS,' and not charge valued customers ANYTHING. I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!"
Trump's comments came a day after he stated that the U.S. was unable to secure trade agreements with numerous countries.
"We'll be telling people what they'll be paying to do business in the United States," he said.
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told investors on Thursday that his company is preparing to raise prices, saying it cannot absorb all of the costs associated with tariffs implemented by Trump. McMillon indicated that Walmart began experiencing increased costs in late April due to tariffs, with those costs substantially rising in the first two weeks of May. He said customers could notice price increases on a broad range of items, even after Trump reduced the tariff rate he imposed on China from 145% to 30%.
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Currently, the U.S. has imposed a 10% tariff on most imported goods and a 25% duty on aluminum and steel products, in addition to the 30% tax on Chinese goods. These tariffs are charged to companies importing the items.
Trump had implemented tariffs on goods from dozens of nations but later opted to pause them for 90 days to facilitate negotiations. When the 90-day pause ends in July, it remains unclear how much importers will have to pay.
Many companies, including Walmart, have stated that some of these costs will be passed on to consumers.
"We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible, but given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels announced this week, we aren't able to absorb all the pressure, given the reality of narrow retail margins."
Trump has insisted that tariffs would help facilitate the return of manufacturing jobs to the U.S. Walmart has said that in recent years it has been purchasing more from U.S. suppliers, but many items must still be imported.
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