Trump warns Walmart: Don’t raise prices due to my tariffs but do eat the costs from those taxes

A Walmart store in Englewood, Colorado, captured on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, under a partly cloudy sky.

By  NEWS BLEND 360

Updated 4:32 PM CDT, May 18, 2025

WASHINGTON (NB360) — On Saturday, President Donald Trump took to social media to criticize Walmart, asserting that the retail giant should absorb the extra costs from his tariffs.

With increased import taxes, Trump has sought to assure a skeptical public that foreign producers would pay these taxes and that retailers and automakers would manage the additional expenses. Most economic analyses question these claims and warn that the trade penalties could worsen inflation. Walmart cautioned on Thursday that prices for items like bananas and children's car seats might increase.

In a Truth Social post, Trump criticized the retailer, which employs 1.6 million people in the U.S. He stated that the company, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, should sacrifice its profits to support his economic plan, which he claims will eventually create more domestic manufacturing jobs.

“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 highlighted the increasingly difficult choices many major American companies face due to his tariffs, from declining sales to the risk of incurring Trump’s anger. Trump has similarly warned domestic automakers not to raise their prices, even though external analyses suggest his tariffs would increase production costs.

So far, those tariffs have dampened the mood of an otherwise strong U.S. economy. The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan survey of consumer sentiment on Friday fell to its second lowest level on record, with about 75% of respondents “spontaneously” mentioning tariffs as they largely expected inflation to rise.

In April, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon was among the retail executives who met with Trump at the White House to discuss tariffs. Yet the Trump administration proceeded despite warnings and has criticized other companies such as Amazon and Apple that are grappling with supply chain disruptions.

Walmart chief financial officer John David Rainey noted that he expects $350 car seats made in China to soon cost an additional $100, a 29% price increase.

“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 reduced its 145% tariffs on China to 30% for a 90-day period. Trump has imposed tariffs as high as 25% on Mexico and Canada due to illegal immigration and drug trafficking, straining the relationship with America’s two largest trading partners.

There is a universal baseline tariff of 10% on most countries as Trump promises to finalize trade deals in the coming weeks after having unsettled the financial markets in early April by imposing higher import taxes based on trade deficits with other countries. Trump insists he intends to maintain 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 imposed import taxes on autos, steel, and aluminum and plans to do so on pharmaceutical drugs, among other products.

The tariffs and Trump’s own changes in how much he should charge have created uncertainty across the U.S. economy, leading Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to keep the central bank’s benchmark rates steady until there is more clarity. Powell has warned that tariffs can both hinder growth and increase prices.

On Saturday, Trump reiterated his calls for Powell to lower the benchmark rates. That could lead to faster inflation, but the president has argued that inflationary pressures have largely vanished 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.