Can you imagine being observed by none other than Donald Trump himself?Yes, that’s currently happening to the American biggest retail company, Walmart. Due to the increase in tariffs established by Trump, the company has been forced to raise its prices, which has infuriated the republican. According to a CNN article published on Monday, May 19, Presiden Trump stated: “Eat the tariffs”.
The real price of the tariffs: Who’s paying?
As it is worldwide known, last 2 April – baptized as the “Day of the Liberation” by the president- the new percentages of the tariffs imposed to products imported in the United States were announced by the administration. In an attempt to address the country’s economic vulnerabilities and to continue positioning itself as the world’s leading power, Trump considered that imposing these tariffs would be an optimal solution, without stopping to think about the consequences. What are the actual consequences of this measure? An increase in the cost of transactions with imported products, which inevitably ends up in the consumer’s pocket.
What products are being affected?
It seems that the healthy breakfast with avocado toasts, the much needed coffee, the delicious banana smoothies and the romantic gesture of giving roses will end, unless we are willing to pay the price increase for these products which, according to Douglas Mc Million, the president of Walmart, are being the most affected by tariffs to their home countries.
Logically, the list is much longer and will continue to affect an increasing number of products, from food, drink, clothing, toys, machinery parts. Any product that may come to mind will be on that list.
Is this an open war between Trump and Walmart?
After being blasted by the president, Walmart has spoken up through John David Rainey, Walmart’s chief financial officer and executive vice president. He stated that it’s not being easy for retailers and suppliers to deal with this aggressive tariffs, which are going to worryingly affect the consumers.
Even Joe Pennintong, a Walmart spokesperson responded to the president’s statements: “We have always worked to keep our prices as low as possible and we won’t stop,” Walmart spokesperson Joe Pennington said. “We’ll keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can given the reality of small retail margins.”
Is President Trump equal bully with China?
Of course not.
More than 60 countries have been affected by US tariffs. All imports have been subject to a 10 per cent rate, plus even higher tariffs for other EU countries.
How has this affected other countries? Not only have they seen it as excessive, but some of them have responded with a counterattack, these being the ones who have imposed taxes on the American country.
As if it were a discussion among children in the schoolyard, Trump’s anger increased and he declared that only those countries that had not taken repressions to their measure would be rewarded.
On the other hand, China, which belongs to the group of countries that did not remain idle, accused the United States of not respecting the trade balance agreements, which would end up creating more problems for Trump than for the countries.
Are China and the US friends again?
After observing the collapse of markets and the reactions of other countries, Trump has been forced to do what no one ever imagined: take a step back.
It has frozen tariffs, lowering them to 10% for all countries and 145% for China, with which it has reached a 60-day truce in order to reach a trade agreement with the Asian giant.
What’s next?
Markets and the world economy seem to be enjoying a respite, but they cannot be trusted. You never know what Trump’s next decision will be.
However, you can count on that China has been able to stop him from his crazy measures and the rest of the countries do not want to sit back either.
If you want to learn more about this topic, read the following article.
