Officials hold talks with Walmart over prices

Officials from the Ministry of Commerce and other government authorities held talks with representatives of Walmart on Tuesday to address the big box giant's request to some of its Chinese suppliers to significantly lower prices.

The authorities are discussing the company's moves that would shift the cost of new US tariffs imposed on Chinese goods to domestic suppliers and consumers, according to the state broadcaster CCTV's Weibo account.

"Walmart's unilateral demand on Chinese firms to cut prices could lead to disruptions of supply chains and hurt the interests of firms and consumers from both countries," it read.

The price cut requests for local suppliers may violate commercial contracts which disrupt the normal market order, it added.

The unilateral imposition of tariffs by the US hurts both Chinese and American companies, and companies from both sides should work together to deal with it, the post says.

Walmart has asked some Chinese suppliers for major price cuts, Bloomberg News reported last week, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.

Certain suppliers, including makers of kitchenware and clothing, have been asked to lower prices by as much as 10 percent per round of tariffs.

This follows Trump's latest move to increase the previous 10 percent tariff on all goods imported from China to 20 percent.

Walmart couldn't be reached for comment on Wednesday. The company has 283 outlets and over 50 Sam's Club wholesale stores in China.

Its China sales revenue totalled 147.3 billion yuan (US$20.32 billion) in the 2024 financial year, according to company releases.

In the financial quarter ended January this year, comparable net sales in China based on constant currency basis climbed 27.7 percent to US$5.1 billion.