Retailers warn of higher prices due to tariffs

Best Buy warned investors in an earnings call yesterday that US consumers will likely face higher prices due to new tariffs. Meanwhile, Target CEO Brian Cornell told investors that customers could see price hikes as early as this week.

According to Corie Barry, Best Buy CEO, vendors are expected to pass tariff costs to retailers.

The company’s last quarter results beat expectations and projected full-year revenue between $41.4 billion and $42.2 billion.

However, it pointed out that an additional 10% tariff on China and 25% on Mexico would force it to increase the prices of most of its products. Best Buy sources 55% of its products from China and 20% from Mexico.

According to analysts, Trump tariffs will also disrupt supply chains and raise costs of other products like cars, food, crude oil and essential goods.

Countries’ response to US tariffs
Responding to additional duties, China swiftly retaliated with tariffs on US agricultural goods. Meanwhile, Canada imposed similar tariffs on $100 billion of US imports. These measures may weaken the demand for electronics.