The second-quarter financial reports of major retailers in the United States in 2025, such as Walmart, Amazon, and T.J.Maxx, have shown growth despite the challenges of the tariff economy. These companies are succeeding in the competition by offering discounts and convenience to consumers, capturing market share from competitors, and emerging victorious in the competitive landscape.
Walmart’s second-quarter financial report revealed a revenue of $177.4 billion and earnings per share of $0.68–0.73 (excluding one-time expenses), while also raising its full-year revenue and earnings expectations. Comparable sales in the U.S., including both physical stores and online, increased by 4.6%, higher than the previous quarter’s 4.5%. E-commerce revenue saw a 25% increase.
Walmart’s strategy involves absorbing most of the tariff costs to keep price hikes at a minimum, thereby alleviating the burden on consumers and undercutting competitors. Walmart’s CEO, Doug McMillon, stated, “We will maintain low prices for as long as possible.”
On the other hand, TJX, the parent company of discount retail chains T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and Home Goods, surpassed expectations with its financial performance and raised its earnings forecast for the next quarter. The company’s second-quarter net sales reached $14.4 billion, a 7% annual increase, with a 4% growth in comparable store sales, exceeding company expectations.
TJX’s strategy involves seizing opportunities to purchase excess inventory that other retailers ordered before the tariff implementation and now need to clear. The company’s CEO described these acquisition opportunities as “excellent.”
Amazon reported second-quarter revenue of $167.7 billion, a 13% year-on-year increase, with an actual growth rate of 12% after excluding currency fluctuations. Operating income reached $19.2 billion, a significant increase from $14.7 billion in the same period last year. Net profit amounted to $18.2 billion, marking a roughly 35% growth from the previous year’s $13.5 billion.
Amazon has improved its delivery network to expedite and lower the cost of package deliveries to customers, driving a substantial increase in online store sales for the latest quarter. The e-commerce giant has not been significantly impacted by tariffs on its pricing so far.
Consumers are still relatively rational and have not significantly reduced spending due to inflation or tariff pass-through. Overall consumer spending remains healthy. However, as tariff costs escalate, retailers are forced to implement more selective price increase strategies to maintain profits.
In this context, retailers with efficient logistics and low-price strategies like Walmart, Amazon, and TJX have a relative advantage, while high-end retailers face greater pressure. Analysis suggests that Walmart’s success in outperforming competitors like Target is partly due to its low prices and a significant portion of its sales coming from groceries—an essential category even for budget-conscious shoppers.
According to Truist retail analyst Scot Ciccarelli, retailers are raising prices, but the impact of tariffs is far below what people expected when President Trump first announced hefty tariffs on dozens of countries in early April.
“Most companies are downplaying the impact of tariffs,” he said. “They are discussing substantive mitigation measures, whether through diversified procurement or passing prices back to suppliers.”
Tariff costs have a more significant impact on some brands, especially those lacking new products desired by consumers or with concerns about future sales. Large and high-performing companies like Walmart can often collaborate with suppliers to pass on costs, but other businesses may not have that leverage.
“If your brand is struggling or your business with suppliers is not really growing, then the suppliers have no incentive to absorb incremental costs, whether from tariffs, the supply chain, or elsewhere,” Ciccarelli told CNBC.