NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart warned on Thursday that higher tariffs on imports from China will mean higher prices.
The comments came after the nation’s largest retailer reported its best sale performance at its established U.S. namesake stores for the fiscal first quarter in nine years. It marked 19 straight quarters of same-store sales gains.
“We’re monitoring the tariff discussions and are hopeful that an agreement can be reached,” said Chief Financial Officer Brett Biggs. But he told reporters, “Increased tariffs will lead to increased prices for our customers.”
Walmart declined to comment on what type of price hikes shoppers could expect and which products would get the biggest increases. But the specter of higher prices was also echoed by Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette. He told investors Wednesday that if a fourth round of tariffs takes effect, that could mean higher retail prices for both store label and national brands. Target, J.C. Penney and other major retailers will be reporting results in the next few days and should shed more light on the issue.
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