A report Wednesday by the Wall Street Journal said Walmart plans to eliminate about 1,500 jobs in a restructuring designed to cut expenses and to speed decision-making.
The Journal reported that Walmart plans to reshape its global technology operations; the e-commerce fulfillment managers that support U.S. stores; and Walmart Connect, its advertising business. The plan was reported to employees, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Online news source Axios said Wednesday that it had confirmation of the plan via office-based employees.
The nation’s retailers, led by Walmart, are adjusting to the wholesale cost of foreign-made products subject to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which are taxes on imports.
Walmart Inc. said on Tuesday that it “will keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can” after Trump previously lambasted the retailer for saying his tariffs would force the company to raise prices.
Doug McMillon, Walmart’s president and chief executive officer, told investors on a May 15 earnings call that even with its recently announced efforts to manage the cost pressure from tariffs, “the higher tariffs will result in higher prices.”
Two days later, Trump posted an accusation on his Truth Social platform that the Bentonville-based retailer was blaming his tariffs for its expected price increases.
“EAT THE TARIFFS,” Trump told Walmart in Saturday’s post, warning the company not to pass the higher import costs to consumers.
“I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!” Trump said in the post.
Walmart responded to Trump’s remarks on Tuesday, when spokesman Joe Pennington said the company has “always worked to keep our prices as low as possible and we won’t stop.”
“We’ll keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can given the reality of small retail margins,” he said.
McMillon said in his call with investors that about two-thirds of Walmart’s merchandise is made in the U.S., positioning the company to better weather higher import costs.
But he and Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said higher prices started showing up on Walmart shelves last month and are gaining momentum in May.
Increased costs are likely to hang on as the back-to-school shopping season shifts into high gear in June and July, McMillon said.
China, Mexico, Canada, Vietnam and India are Walmart’s largest markets for imported goods, Rainey said.
“We’re encouraged by the recent trade negotiations especially concerning China,” Rainey said.
However, he said that “the level of tariffs that result from those discussions and the timing of when they ultimately become final may cause larger swings in our financial performance from one quarter to the next.”
Walmart isn’t the only company warning that tariffs will cause price increases.
Procter & Gamble, which makes household brands such as Crest toothpaste, Tide detergent and Charmin toilet paper, has also said it will likely have to pass on higher prices to consumers.
Last month, P&G said it was doing whatever it can to reduce higher costs from tariffs, such as shifting sourcing to avoid duties. But the company said shoppers may still see price hikes as early as July.
Ford has said it will have to raise prices on some cars; Microsoft has already increased recommended retail prices for Xbox video game consoles and some controllers; and toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker has said it raised prices in April and will do so again in the third quarter because of higher tariffs.
Mattel said it expects to raise prices on its toys despite a decision to move production out of China.
Information for this article was contributed by Wyatte Grantham-Phillips of The Associated Press.