Many investors celebrated the agreement between the U.S. and China to relax trade tensions at least temporarily. Walmart's executives expressed some relief as well in the company's Q1 earnings call. CEO C. Douglas McMillon thanked President Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for lowering tariffs on Chinese imports.

The retail giant said Trump’s import taxes remain too high to avoid passing along to shoppers, who could start paying more for some items as soon as late May.

The trade update came as Walmart posted solid top-line growth, including strong US comparable-sales gains, but decreased net income for its fiscal 2026 first quarter. Still, the Bentonville-based company topped Wall Street’s forecast for adjusted earnings per share.