Trump warns Walmart: Don't raise prices due to my tariffs but do eat the
costs from those taxes
[May 19, 2025] By
JOSH BOAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Saturday ripped into Walmart,
saying on social media that the retail giant should eat the additional
costs created by his tariffs.
As Trump has jacked up import taxes, he has tried to assure a skeptical
public that foreign producers would pay for those taxes and that
retailers and automakers would absorb the additional expenses. Most
economic analyses are deeply skeptical of those claims and have warned
that the trade penalties would worsen inflation. Walmart warned on
Thursday that everything from bananas to children's car seats could
increase in price.
Trump, in his Truth Social post, lashed out at the retailer, which
employs 1.6 million people in the United States. He said the company,
based in Bentonville, Arkansas, should sacrifice its profits for the
sake of his economic agenda that he says will eventually lead to more
domestic jobs in manufacturing.
“Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising
prices throughout the chain,” Trump posted. “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!!!”
The posting by the Republican president reflected the increasingly
awkward series of choices that many major American companies face as a
result of his tariffs, from deteriorating sales to the possibility of
incurring Trump's wrath. Trump has similarly warned domestic automakers
to not raise their prices, even though outside analyses say his tariffs
would raise production costs.
So far, those tariffs have darkened the mood of an otherwise resilient
U.S. economy. The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan
survey of consumer sentiment on Friday slipped to its second lowest
measure on record, with roughly 75% of respondents “spontaneously”
mentioning tariffs as they largely expected inflation to accelerate.
In April, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon was among the retail executives who
met with Trump at the White House to discuss tariffs. But the Trump
administration went forward despite warnings and has attacked other
companies such as Amazon and Apple that are struggling with the
disruptions to their supply chains.
Walmart chief financial officer John David Rainey said he thinks $350
car seats made in China will soon cost an additional $100, a 29% price
increase.
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A Walmart store is shown, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, in Englewood, Colo.
(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
 “We’re wired to keep prices low, but
there’s a limit to what we can bear, or any retailer for that
matter,” he told The Associated Press on Thursday after the company
reported strong first-quarter sales.
The administration recently ratcheted down its 145% tariffs on China
to 30% for a 90-day period. Trump has placed tariffs as high as 25%
on Mexico and Canada due to illegal immigration and drug
trafficking, harming the relationship with America's two largest
trading partners.
There is a universal baseline tariff of 10% on most countries as
Trump promises to reach trade deals in the coming weeks after having
shocked the financial markets in early April by charging higher
import taxes based on trade deficits with other countries. Trump
insists he intends to preserve the tariffs as a revenue source and
that a framework agreement with the United Kingdom would largely
keep the 10% tariff rate in place.
Trump has also placed import taxes on autos, steel and aluminum and
plans to do so on pharmaceutical drugs, among other products.
The tariffs and Trump's own reversals on how much he should charge
have generated uncertainty across the U.S. economy, such that
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has held the central bank's
benchmark rates steady until there is more clarity. Powell has
warned that tariffs can both hurt growth and raise prices.
On Saturday, Trump repeated his calls for Powell to cut the
benchmark rates. That could cause inflation to accelerate, but the
president has maintained that inflationary pressures have largely
disappeared from the economy.
“Too Late Powell, a man legendary for being Too Late, will probably
blow it again - But who knows???” Trump posted on Truth Social.
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