
Stocks that are most closely tied to the health of the US consumer have trailed the broader market badly this year. A potential Federal Reserve interest-rate hike Wednesday may add to the segment’s stress.
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Stocks that are most closely tied to the health of the US consumer have trailed the broader market badly this year. A potential Federal Reserve interest-rate hike Wednesday may add to the segment’s stress.

Amazon, Walmart and Target test key technical levels as investors await the Fed and assess pressure on U.S. consumers.

Jim Cramer put a precise number on what diesel is doing to every product you buy, and the math he laid out on CNBC has nothing to do with the inflation figure Washington reports. What it means for McDonald's, Walmart, and Target stocks depends on how long one critical cushion holds.
TJX said its $331 million reimbursement was partially offset by supply chain investments, while Burlington's $55 million return will be used to boost customer value.

Cost inflation remains a top concern for delivery operators, with 88 percent saying last-mile costs are growing at the same pace as revenue or faster.

Abercrombie & Fitch shares have surged after record quarterly results and an Argus upgrade to Buy, though Citi downgraded the stock, citing a one-off tariff refund and stretched valuation.
A Heritage Foundation economist is challenging the Trump administration's push for semiconductor tariffs, arguing that the timing could saddle chip buyers with higher costs before a single new American fab is ready to ship product.

Tariff refunds and the ever-resilient U.S. consumer are fueling the heftiest rise in big-company profits in years
A debate over where class actions filed by customers seeking tariff refunds from large retailers should be heard comes as the money has begun to flow back into company coffers.
Robert Reich sees white-collar workers in the crosshairs of AI and American homebuyers caught in a trade war neither side can win. His diagnosis of what connects those two threats may surprise you.

Sticky inflation is quietly rewarding a specific group of stocks with decades of uninterrupted dividend growth, and Wall Street's top analysts say five of them are built to profit no matter how long rising prices persist.

Gap reports earnings Thursday after disappointing results sent its stock tumbling, but lowered expectations could give the retailer an opportunity to turn things around.
Walmart is investing its $2.9 billion return into price cuts, while Target plans for additional reimbursements and Home Depot and Lowe’s offset higher costs.

A former White House trade negotiator who helped craft agreements during the first Trump term says Canada walked away from the most generous tariff offer the U.S. has made to any trading partner, and now four industries are bracing for a stalemate that could stretch for months.
Companies are using tariff refunds to lower prices, cushion their margins, and, to a very small extent, return the money straight to the customer.

Spending on K-12 and back-to-college combined is expected to hit a record of nearly $147 billion, according to the National Retail Federation. “Customers are responding to just absolutely fantastic investments in price,” Walmart’s U.S. CEO David Guggina said yesterday during the company’s earnings call that highlighted the cost pressures facing consumers. “We have a list of 14 key items that are priced less than what we saw in 2019,” he also said of the store’s school supplies, citing examples from the store’s Pen+Gear brand, which has crayons for 25 cents and No. 2 pencils for 92 cents.

The retailer's earnings doubled -- with $994 million of tariff refunds inside. Here's what the quarter looks like without it.

Walmart set a somber tone for the first week of retailer earnings, but that wasn’t the whole story. The big news was Walmart’s sales woes as the Bentonville, Ark.-based giant reported a same-store sales decline—the first since 2020. Target meanwhile, showed some signs of life, reflecting its turnaround efforts.

Tariff refunds couldn’t cover for comparable sales missing at 2.6%, and Target’s report the day before proved the excuse wasn’t going to fly

The refunds contributed $752m to net earnings and $1.65 to earnings per share (EPS).

Walmart earnings are due early Thursday after a summer promotional pricing blitz to lure inflation-weary consumers. On Wednesday, WMT stock edged higher, near a key level. The big Dow Jones stock is the nation's and world's largest retailer by 2025 sales, according to the National Retail Federation.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection is only processing refunds for registered importers of record, and they are not obligated to refund shoppers.
Comparable sales rose 3.8% on traffic growth, with EPS guidance lifted $0.75 excluding tariff refunds

Target (TGT) is buzzing on Wednesday after the retail giant beat second quarter earnings estimates, topped off by a raise on full-year guidance. Yahoo Finance Senior Reporter Brooke DiPalma highlights the biggest takeaways from the company's earnings calls, underlining price discount drivers ahead of the back-to-school shopping season.
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