Walmart (WMT) pushes Chinese suppliers to reduce prices amid Trump tariff fears - report. (00:23) LG Energy reaches deal to buy GM's stake in Michigan battery JV for $2B. (01:56) Visa (V), American Express (AXP) seek to swipe Apple (AAPL) credit card from Mastercard - report. (02:44)Episode transcripts seekingalpha.com/wsb.Show links: Biggest stock movers Wednesday: NCNO, TTEC, GRFS and moreCoreWeave rockets on third day of trading after tepid IPO responseBig Pharma drops sharply ahead of Trump’s tariff announcementWells Fargo warns Tesla could fall 50% after deliveries, earnings, and the Cybercab rollout disappointSign up for our daily newsletter here and for full access to analyst ratings, stock quant scores, dividend grades, subscribe to Seeking Alpha Premium at seekingalpha.com/subscriptions.
Full Episode
Welcome to Seeking Alpha's Wall Street Breakfast, where we cover the top news for investors every morning. It's great to have you here on this Wednesday, April 2nd. I'm Julie Morgan. Retailers squeeze suppliers over tariffs, a major EV battery deal, and Visa makes a big money play for Apple's credit card.
Walmart is reportedly actively pushing its Chinese suppliers to reduce prices in response to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration. According to a report by Bloomberg that cites people familiar with the matter, the Chinese suppliers are struggling to comply with these demands due to already thin profit margins.
Some Chinese manufacturers are having trouble meeting Walmart's expectations to reduce costs by up to 10% for each round of tariffs. The pressure on suppliers has led to varied responses, with some manufacturers concerned that any significant reduction in prices could lead them into financial losses.
A few Chinese factory owners have started to explore alternative manufacturing locations elsewhere in Asia, like Cambodia and Vietnam, to maintain both their long-term relationships with U.S. customers and profitability. The sources added that Walmart and its suppliers are negotiating across product categories not only by country of origin.
Chinese state media criticized Walmart's approach, suggesting that demanding such price cuts could disrupt fair competition and potentially harm both U.S. and Chinese businesses. The retail giant has been diversifying its supply chain to reduce reliance on China, but the country remains a crucial source for various goods like clothing, toys, and electronics, among others.
It has been widely reported that Costco and Target are also pushing for discounts. South Korea's LG Energy Solutions said on Tuesday it agreed to acquire the assets held by General Motors in its Michigan electric vehicle battery joint venture for $2 billion.
GM has been scaling back its EV plans because of uncertainty about the future of EV battery production and consumer tax credits under the Trump administration, saying in December that it planned to sell its stake in the Michigan plant. LG said the transaction costs were part of its capital spending plan announced earlier this year and could be lower than $2 billion.
The two companies continue to maintain two other U.S. battery plant joint ventures operating in Ohio and Tennessee. With the acquisition, LG Energy is expected to produce batteries for Toyota. Visa has offered Apple $100 million to switch its popular co-branded credit card to its payment network from MasterCard.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter, that American Express has also been seeking the roles of both network provider and the card issuer. There's already been reporting that JPMorgan Chase and Synchrony Financial have been competing to replace Goldman Sachs as the bank issuing the Apple card.
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