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Tariffs live updates: Trump urges Walmart to 'eat the tariffs' and wants Fed to cut rates 'sooner than later'
Yahoo Finance
Updated 2 min read
President Donald Trump, fresh off a trip to the Middle East, renewed his criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Saturday and called on Walmart to "eat the tariffs" rather than raise prices.
"Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain. 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!!!," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Walmart (WMT) on Thursday warned that rising costs from tariffs could soon lead to higher prices for shoppers. The company was the latest to skip giving second-quarter profit guidance due to Trump's tariffs disrupting global trade.
Also on Saturday, Trump said the Federal Reserve should cut rates "sooner, rather than later," and continued to express his frustration with Powell
"Too Late Powell, a man legendary for being Too Late, will probably blow it again - But who knows???" Trump added.
President Trump said Friday that the US will set tariff rates for its trading partners within the next few weeks. He said his administration cannot negotiate trade deals with all countries at once due to limited capacity.
“I think we’re going to be very fair. But it’s not possible to meet the number of people that want to see us,” the president said during a meeting with business executives in the United Arab Emirates.
Meanwhile, Trump's Middle East visit has opened the door for Saudi Arabia and the UAE to push ahead with their AI ambitions, with firms like Nvidia (NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) set to supply advanced chips.
Here are the latest updates as the policy reverberates around the world.
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Brian Sozzi
Trump says Walmart should 'eat the tariffs' rather than raise prices
Walmart (WMT) joins rocker Bruce Springsteen and pop music icon Taylor Swift as getting a verbal lashing from president Trump on social media this week.
The president ripped Walmart execs on Saturday for signaling tariff-driven price hikes that are poised to begin later this month.
"Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain. 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!!!," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
"We have 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," a Walmart spokesperson told Yahoo Finance.
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon was among the CEOs who met with the president in late April to discuss tariff implications. A person familiar with the discussions told Yahoo Finance Walmart made a case to remove tariffs on China altogether as even lower tariffs would have major implications on prices for general merchandise items such as furniture and toys.
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Josh Schafer
Tariffs are falling more quickly than Wall Street expected
Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer writes that the US effective tariff rate has moved lower over the past month amid a stock market rally. At 14.4%, the effective US tariff rate is nearly back to its pre-"Liberation Day" level, as our Chart of the Week shows:
But in markets, the news isn't just about what's said. It's also about how what was said matches investor expectations. On April 2, tariffs negatively surprised as Trump's announcements were, as we wrote at the time, "worse than expected."
Well, the latest round of tariff announcements brought up a counter phrase: "Better than feared."
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Reuters
Trump pushes Fed for rate cuts, renews criticism of Powell
President Donald Trump on Saturday said in a social media post the U.S. Federal Reserve should cut rates "sooner, rather than later."
Trump also criticized the head of the central bank, Jerome Powell.
"THE CONSENSUS OF ALMOST EVERYBODY IS THAT, 'THE FED SHOULD CUT RATES SOONER, RATHER THAN LATER,'" Trump said in the post.
"Too Late Powell, a man legendary for being Too Late, will probably blow it again - But who knows???" Trump added.
Read more here
Bloomberg
Uncertainty over global economy due to tariffs overshadows better-than-feared Q1 results
As the first-quarter earnings season concludes, many companies had better-than-expected results. But Bloomberg reports the overarching uncertainty in the global economy — due in large part to President Donald Trump's tariffs — continues to drive the narrative, Bloomberg reports:
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Amalya Dubrovsky
Trump willing to travel to China to meet with Xi
Bloomberg reports:
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Grace O'Donnell
Consumer sentiment hits second-lowest reading on record
Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer reports:
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Jenny McCall
South Korea minister asks for exemption from US tariffs at Greer meeting
Reuters reports:
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Jenny McCall
Trump says US will set tariff rates for other nations in weeks
President Donald Trump said on Friday that he'll decide on tariff rates for US trading partners in the next few weeks.
He said the US can't handle tariff talks with everyone all at once.
Bloomberg News reports:
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Jenny McCall
Japan to hold out for better trade deal with US
Japan is pushing for full removal of Trump’s 25% car tariffs, signaling it won't settle for a partial deal. Tokyo aims to avoid domestic backlash by holding out for better terms.
The FT reports:
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Jenny McCall
‘Export rush’ grips China as businesses scramble to make the most of tariff pause
CNN reports:
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Jenny McCall
Walmart's tariff warning spells trouble for US retailers
Walmart's (WMT) latest tariff warning signals price hikes ahead - and retailers like Best Buy and Mattel could feel the pinch. Yahoo Finance's senior reporter Brooke DiPalma reports:
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Jenny McCall
Trump administration considers adding Chinese chipmakers to export blacklist
The FT reports:
The Trump administration plans to put a number of Chinese chipmaking companies on an export blacklist, but some officials want to delay the move to avoid hurting efforts to strike a long-term trade agreement with China.
The commerce department has compiled a list of Chinese companies — including memory chipmaker ChangXin Memory (CXMT) — to add to the “entity list,” according to five people familiar with the matter.
Several of the people said the Bureau of Industry and Security, the commerce department arm that oversees export controls, had drafted a list that also includes the subsidiaries of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp, China’s biggest chipmaker, and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co, its largest memory chipmaker. SMIC and YMTC are already on the list.
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Jenny McCall
China-US 90-day tariff truce should be extended, state-run media says
China's state-run media Global Times said the 90-day tariff pause agreed by the US and China is too short. The deal was made by trade talks in Switzerland last weekend. Now both sides are continuing discussions in Korea.
Reuters reports:
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Rian Howlett
US-China tariffs expected to remain at 30% post-truce, analysts say
Donald Trump's wide-ranging tariffs on Chinese imports are expected to remain at 30%, down from the 145% previously touted, after the current 90-day hold while a trade deal is reached.
Bloomberg reports:
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Grace O'Donnell
4 in 5 Canadians believe old US relationship is 'over,' poll says
Bloomberg reports:
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Grace O'Donnell
Birkenstock hikes price of sandals to help offset tariffs
Starting in July, Birkenstock (BIRK) will begin raising prices for its sandals and clogs by low single digits in order to pass along tariff costs, according to Reuters.
The 251-year-old company makes its shoes in Germany, which currently faces a 10% tariff rate for items coming into the US. If the US and European Union haven't struck a new trade agreement before a 90-day tariff pause is up, that rate will shoot up to 20% on July 9.
"We will be fully offsetting the effects from current existing tariffs," Birkenstock CFO Ivica Krolo told Reuters in an interview. "We're not raising in one region only, we see it as a global exercise."
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Grace O'Donnell
Retail sales slow sharply in April as pre-tariff spending burst reverses
Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer reports:
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Grace O'Donnell
EU readies new trade proposal for US as tariff talks move slowly
Bloomberg News reports:
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Jenny McCall
US-China trade clash risks making Europe dumping ground for cheap goods
Bloomberg News reports:
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Jenny McCall
Deere lowers bottom of outlook range on tariff uncertainty
Bloomberg News reports:
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