Home Depot, Walmart customers get good news after tariff scare

President Trump made headlines in late 2024 and early 2025 when he told a variety of podcasters and media outlets that he loves one word in particular. 

"It's a beautiful thing called 'tariff,'" he said, "which is the most beautiful word in the dictionary." 

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If you ask many retailers across America, however, they might tell you it's the most terrifying word in the dictionary. 

Tariffs, or the taxes companies pay to import non-domestic goods, are intended to protect national businesses and minimize any competitive edge a foreign country might have by lowering prices. 

Since domestic businesses are forced to pay a duty on the goods they import, those goods would be more expensive, and (in theory) it would reduce our reliance on foreign goods.

Here's a list of the tariffs Trump has proposed on some of our biggest trading partners: 

• China: 145%
• European Union: 10%
• Japan: 10%
• Vietnam: 10%
• South Korea: 10%
• India: 10%
• Taiwan: 10%

Retailers spooked by tariffs

It's not hard to understand why an increase in duties might scare America's retailers, both large and small. 

An increase in up-front prices presents retailers with something of a quagmire; they must decide to either absorb those higher costs and allow them to eat into their profits, or pass them off to the customer and risk losing their business altogether. 

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Many companies have sounded the alarm on high tariffs; Adidas and Carter's have warned that higher prices are likely in the near future. 

And some businesses, like Progressive Furniture, are closing forever, saying the mounting tariff pressure is too much to continue operations. 

Large retailers working toward new normal

But not all is lost for some of America's most iconic retailers. 

A recent meeting with some of the largest corporate leaders in the U.S., including Walmart  (WMT) , Target  (TGT) , and Home Depot  (HD) , reportedly resulted in a "constructive dialogue" about tariffs and policy. 

And now, these three retailers have reportedly resumed shipping goods from China, despite warning earlier that shortages and high prices could be the new reality. 

These retailers had paused shipments previously as they attempted to navigate uncertain business conditions amid the new 145% tariffs with one of our largest trading partners.

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But just because shipments are resuming does not mean the situation is entirely fixed. Most of these retailers want to ensure their shelves remain stocked, but the future of prices remains uncertain. 

Target is reportedly asking its suppliers to help absorb some of the higher costs to mitigate the impact on customers. 

Walmart, for its part, is asking its Chinese suppliers to take down its prices by as much as 10%. It's estimated that as much as 70-80% of Walmart's inventory is sourced from or made in China. 

And China has since retaliated to Trump's 145% tariff with a 125% tariff on U.S. goods.