Walmart said its prices could rise in the coming months due to elevated costs despite a strong showing this quarter.
The announcement could create trouble for President Donald Trump and Republicans, particularly as rising grocery costs are some of the most impactful factors affecting economic perception. The rising cost of living was a major factor in Trump and the GOP’s sweeping victories in 2024, an aspect that could be turned around in 2026.
Speaking at Yahoo Finance’s Market Catalysts, Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said the company had worked to pass as few tariff-related cost increases as possible onto prices. Walmart was working to “minimize the overall price impact on customers,” particularly on items that had been hit especially hard, such as bananas and avocados.
So far, he said Walmart was “very selective” about where it passes higher costs along.
However, the tariff-related cost increases have continued to the point where the company may need to start increasing some prices in the coming months, despite performing strongly.
Inflation at Walmart has fallen to just 1%, but food prices are still about 25% higher than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the possibility of price increases in the coming months, Rainey was largely optimistic in his reading. He said earlier fears that tariffs would have a major effect were largely unfounded.
“We have seen less impact [from tariffs] than what we thought we would have expected early in the year,” he said. “There has been some relief on some key food categories.… Really, the only price pressure that we’re seeing in food generally right now is in the beef category, which is largely a reflection of the commodity and the cyclical nature of the herd size of the U.S.”
Recent economic anxiety has been largely beneficial for the company, as shoppers are more likely to shop at big stores like Walmart, where they perceive deals as being better.
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Walmart’s Q3 revenue stood at $179.5 billion, up 5.8% from the previous year and surpassing earlier expectations, according to Bloomberg. Same-store sales rose 4.5%, transactions rose 1.8%, and average basket size rose 2.7%. Online sales rose 27%.
Any increase in prices is unlikely to be seen for months, meaning Thanksgiving meals will be unaffected.