Walmart is the latest company warning of price increases if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on a plan to significantly expand tariffs.
“We never want to raise prices,” Walmart CFO John David Rainey told CNBC on Tuesday. “Our model is everyday low prices. But there probably will be cases where prices will go up for consumers.”
Rainey said it’s too soon to say which products would be affected, but he told CNBC about two-thirds of the retailer's items are not subject to tariffs since they are produced or assembled in the U.S.
Trump, who enacted tariffs during his first administration, has suggested across-the-board tariffs of 10% to 20% and at least 60% on goods imported from China during his second term.
E.l.f. Beauty also told CNBC it would consider price increases, while footwear brand Steve Madden said it would cut back on importing goods from China. Stanley Black & Decker and AutoZone noted on earnings calls they would raise prices if faced with tariffs.
Prices on products that rely heavily on imports, such as electronics, toys and clothes, would be likely to rise, ABC News reported. Trump's transition responded by saying his first-term tariffs "created jobs, spurred investment, and resulted in no inflation."
The National Retail Federation disagrees. Across-the-board tariffs would be "a tax on American families," NRF CEO Matthew Shay said earlier this month. Tariffs will “drive inflation and price increases and will result in job losses," Shay said. The NRF released a study that said the cost of furniture, household appliances, footwear and travel goods would also increase.
Trump's selection of a Treasury secretary could indicated how he intends to implement tariffs, per The Associated Press. The top candidates have different views on how they should be used.
Billionaire investor Scott Bessent has suggested using tariffs to negotiate with other countries, while Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick has voiced support for broad tariffs, The Associated Press reported.
Trump announced later Tuesday that Lutnick has been tapped for commerce secretary, taking him out of the running to lead U.S. Treasury. As commerce secretary, Lutnick would still play a key role in carrying out plans to raise and enforce tariffs.
