No more rollbacks? Walmart is known for rolling back prices but the mega-retailer just announced a price hike. The company will be raising prices due to tariffs, Walmart’s CEO said in an earnings call with investors on Thursday.
Price increases are expected to go into effect later this month. It’s unclear how the potential hike will impact shoppers over Memorial Day weekend.
“We will do our best to keep prices as low as possible,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said per NPR. “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.”
Earlier in the week, the Trump administration lowered Chinese tariffs from 145% to 30%. The latest tariffs deal will only last for 90 days.
“We were wired for everyday low prices but the magnitude of these increases is more than any retailer can absorb. And so I’m concerned the consumer is going to see higher prices,” Walmart CFO John David Rainey told CNBC. “You’ll begin to see them likely towards the tail end of this month, and then certainly much more in June .”
Walmart fell slightly short of revenue expectations in the first quarter of the year. According to CNBC, the company made $165.61 billion — just shy of its expected of $165.84 billion. Walmart’s net income fell $4.49 billion.
The company saw a 4.5% increase in competitive sales growth and 7.8% growth in international net sales, per Walmart’s earnings report. Additionally, the retailer’s e-commerce sales jumped 21%, marking Walmart’s first time making an e-commerce profit in Q1.
Season 9 