As a result of the Trump administration's tariffs on Chinese goods, Walmart has warned that their stores could see price hikes nationwide, CNN reports. Donald Trump and the White House decided to raise tariffs on over $200 billion of Chinese-produced goods last week
"We're going to continue to do everything we can to keep prices low. That's who we are," Walmart's chief financial officer Brett Riggs said in a call with reporters on Thursday. "However, increased tariffs will lead to increased prices, we believe, for our customers."
The items that will be impacted by the price increase weren't mentioned, but Riggs did mention how Walmart is working on strategies to cut costs elsewhere in order to maintain low prices when possible.
A large majority of the food sold at Walmart won't see changes as a result of the tariffs, due to decreased imports from China. Regardless, 26 percent of their products are from China, but their closest competitor Target's inventory sits at 34 percent Chinese goods. Other companies will see a larger effect on their merchandise, specifically when it comes to sporting goods and auto parts retailers.
The process of putting new tariffs in place on Chinese imports has already begun, and as such a large majority of toys, clothes, and even sneakers could become more expensive, too. It's been estimated that China is responsible for at least 72 percent of all footwear in the United States, while they're also behind 41 percent of all clothing. Macy's has already announced plans to raise prices on certain products due to the current trade war.
