The wicked profiteers over at Walmart seem to have missed a trick. Doubtless, the greedflationists will explain in due course how this is all part of some deeper scheme, a feint perhaps to trap the unwary.
CNBC:
Walmart on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings that missed Wall Street’s expectations by a wide margin, as the nation’s largest retailer felt pressure from rising fuel costs and higher levels of inventory.
Shares were down about 9% early Tuesday.
Walmart is a much-watched company as investors and economists look for clues about how the American consumer is weathering inflation.
The discounter’s bottom line results for the quarter “were unexpected and reflect the unusual environment,” CEO Doug McMillon said in a release Tuesday morning. Inflation in the U.S. is at a nearly four-decade high. The consumer price index, a broad measure of prices for goods and services, increased 8.3% in April compared with a year ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The significant jump in fuel prices, elevated labor costs and aggressive inventory levels weighed on the company, Chief Financial Officer Brett Biggs told CNBC in an interview. He said some merchandise arrived late and other items, such as grills, plants and pool chemicals, didn’t sell due to “unseasonably cool weather in the U.S.”
Managing a company at times of inflation, particularly with the added twist now being provided by our current supply-chain complications is, in fact, not easy. Senator Warren and the other greedflationists might like to reflect on that, but then again, there are more votes to be won by blaming big this and big that, so here we are.