Walmart CEO Doug McMillon discusses quarterly revenue, sales trends, e-commerce, investing in China and coronavirus promotion.
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said Wednesday he hopes the U.S. and China will build a “cooperative” relationship if the coronavirus pandemic threatens to blow up the countries’ recent trade agreement.
“It is our hope that these countries will work together, this government and in the years to come, find ways to have a partnership,” McMillon told “Morning with Mary.” “We want to be able to do business in China. I know a lot of American companies and farmers want that too.”
A customer wearing a mask shop at a Walmart supermarket amid the coronavirus outbreak on July 16, 2020, in Houston, Texas. (Zeng Jingning / China News Service via Getty Images)
Walmart has more than 400 stores and clubs in China and builds e-commerce operations there, McMillon said.
“We buy products from China, but in the US, about two-thirds of what we sell is made in the United States,” he added.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMT | WALMART INC. | 133.33 | -1.38 | -1.02% |
As of July, China was left behind on purchase commitments to the U.S. made during a phase one trade agreement that President Trump welcomes as a signature of his first term.
After a slow start when the COVID-19 pandemic went global, Beijing bought just $ 56.4 billion worth of US goods this year, according to Chinese data. The partial trade deal signed in January said China would have to buy $ 200 billion more of US exports over the next two years than the roughly $ 130 billion it bought in 2017.
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McMillon also addressed the need for small business government support amid the coronavirus pandemic. Walmart has hired about 500,000 people since mid-March, but many of those roles are temporary, he said.
“A lot of these people lost jobs,” McMillon said. “They need jobs to go back. We need to get Congress together to figure out what steps need to be taken so that small businesses are protected.”
Walmart shared profits on Tuesday. Retailers’ profits spun 79% in the three months through June, as more Americans ordered goods online as they rode the COVID-19 pandemic from home.
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The Bentonville, Ark.-based big-box retailer earned $ 6.48 billion, or an adjusted $ 1.56 per share, on top of the $ 1.25 that Wall Street analysts surveyed by Refinitiv expected. Total revenue rose 5.4% to $ 137.7 billion, beating the $ 135.48 billion consensus.
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Fox Business’ Jonathan Garber and RN White contributed to this report.
