Latest news with #PoonamGoyal
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's Why Consumers Keep Spending Despite Tariffs
Despite President Donald Trump's erratic tariff strategy, consumers are continuing to spend—for now. Poonam Goyal, sector head and senior equity analyst for North American e-commerce at Bloomberg Intelligence, said that despite some doomsday predictions about consumers pulling back because of the Trump administration's macroeconomic moves, they have remained resilient throughout the first half of 2025. More from Sourcing Journal PPI Jumps in July, Underscoring Growing Costs for US Manufacturers-And Likely Future Price Hikes for Consumers Port of LA Handles Record Volumes, but Imports 'May Have Just Peaked' Air Cargo Capacity 'Correction' in Play as Tariff Deadlines Come and Go In a presentation at eTail East, she noted that consumer sentiment has started to tick back up. That's according to the University of Michigan's Survey of Consumers, widely considered a measurement of sentiment for the U.S. shopper. In July, the index crept up one full percentage point, as compared with June. That, paired with other indicators like a nearly flat unemployment rate, indicate that the consumer remains hardy despite the continued upheaval coming from Washington. That's, in part, because consumers' definition of value continues to change for the circumstances. 'Even though [brands and retailers] all feel the pain of tariffs, inflation, higher costs, the consumer really hasn't seen it. When they go to stores, they're still being met with discounts. There's still a lot of inventory in the pipeline, depending on what retailer you're shopping at,' she said. 'For the normal person, it's like, 'If I can't buy it here, I can buy it here—if I can't buy it on Amazon, maybe I can get a cheaper price at Temu.'' What's more, she noted, the prices of consumer staples continue to remain steady, which leads the consumer to believe their spending power has buoyancy in today's market. The Trump administration famously ran its campaign on promises of cheaper prices on eggs and gas. Goyal said, for the moment, they're delivering on those promises, even if other sectors have started reactively hiking prices. 'You are seeing prices rise selectively. But when I think about what you buy on a day to day basis—the price of milk, the price of eggs, the price of gas, even—they're going down. They're not really materially rising, or they're staying steady. So when the consumer looks at their pocketbook, [they're] saying, 'Well, I'm getting gas at under $3 a gallon still; it's not $5 where it was a few years ago.' So that gives them confidence that things are going to be okay,' she said. '[For] apparel, household goods, when you look at those categories, I think it depends on the retailer that you're shopping at to see if prices have gone up.' Goyal said she had seen prices increase at some apparel brands and retailers, like Zara and Primark, both fast-fashion purveyors. For instance, while a Primark T-shirt may have cost $4 or $5 prior to the announcement of tariffs, it now may sit around $7. Still, she noted, if that's on the comparative low end of what it costs a consumer to purchase that item in today's market, they are still likely to purchase it. 'Where do I go to get this T-shirt for now, less than $7? Not that many places. So therefore, they're paying for it,' Goyal said. 'It's all really comparable—are you still offering value relative to your peers in the same price point?' While tariff rates have gone into effect for many countries—some at higher rates than leaders had worked to negotiate—Goyal said she believes prices should remain stable through the end of 2025. 'From what I'm hearing, the inventory for the back half is already here, so it's not really getting impacted by the high tariffs that we're about to see. So therefore, that tells me that we have at least six months,' she said. 'Holiday isn't really at risk right now, but what's at risk is 2026. What happens in the spring, when you're getting all this new inventory in at higher prices?' For now, though, many retailers face a consumer content with the status quo; Goyal said indicators like unemployment rates and consumer credit usage continue to suggest a consumer that will carry some level of optimism. The unemployment rate, in particular, remains the most important indicator in Goyal's eyes. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a 4.2-percent unemployment rate for July, which remained nearly flat as compared with June. Goyal said that rate gives her no pause; it would need to rise an additional percentage point or two for her to reconsider that stance. 'When you look at where we are today versus where we were five years ago, 10 years ago, even 20 years ago, we're still sitting at pretty much full employment. And that is really what's driving the consumer to spend. As long as the consumers are employed, they will spend,' she said. 'So unless you see this number rise to over 5, 6 percent—in the mid-to-high single digits—I don't think we'll have a place where consumers will pull back spending or materially even trade down from where they are today.' But that's not to say that retailers and brands are in the clear, she said. 2026 could prove tricky for companies, particularly if tariff rates on certain countries increase or remain flat at higher-than-expected rates. The Trump administration has yet to sort out an official tariff rate on China, a long-discussed issue that has, in recent months, seen the rate on the Asian nation hitting triple digits at times. Trump is expected to come to an agreement with China ahead of the end of the year, but in the interim, the duty rate stands at 30 percent. Other key sourcing hubs, like Vietnam and the European Union, face duties of 20 percent and 15 percent, respectively. 'Clearly, tariffs will impact retailers. We're starting to see mid single digit price increases selectively taking place in retail. Could that go higher? I think so in 2026, if we don't see any relief to these tariff rates,' Goyal said. Trump has made it clear that he aims to revitalize American manufacturing, using tariffs as a jumping off point. He has specific aspirations for some industries more than others, and fashion and apparel don't seem to fit into his picture—instead, he has focused on technology, defense and shipbuilding, among other industries. Goyal said in today's macroeconomic environment, it's highly unlikely that brands and retailers will be able to rely on goods made in the U.S. for their American consumers. 'We will not make apparel in the United States—or footwear. That is not what we do. We had let go of that decades ago, and the idea that if we introduce tariffs to all these other countries, that we will start to bring production here—sure, we can bring a little but there's no way that we're going to produce 80 percent of what we consume in the United States. We don't have the infrastructure for that. We don't have the talent for that,' Goyal said.
Al Etihad
5 days ago
- Business
- Al Etihad
Amazon to offer same-day groceries delivery in 2,300 cities
13 Aug 2025 20:03 (AGENCIES) Inc. plans to offer same-day grocery delivery in 2,300 cities by the end of the year, more than doubling the current number and marking a major expansion in its effort to compete with traditional will be able to order perishable items such as produce, dairy, meat, seafood and baked goods, alongside frozen foods and household items, the company said in a statement on grocery delivery is free for Amazon Prime subscribers on orders over $25 in most cities, it said. For non-members, the service carries a $12.99 fee, regardless of order size." latest move to grow food share by offering free same-day delivery of groceries, in tandem with core products for Prime members, could pull some on-demand orders away from rivals like Walmart and Kroger as its $25 minimum order undercuts theirs,' Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Poonam Goyal and Anurag Rana wrote in a of the grocery-delivery company Instacart plummeted almost 11% on the news. Supermarket chain The Kroger Co. fell 4.3%. Walmart Inc., which also offers same-day grocery delivery in some markets, dropped 1.3%. Ahold Delhaize, the owner of supermarket chains Stop & Shop, Food Lion, Giant and Hannaford, slipped 1.3%. Amazon rose less than 1%.Stocks of Amazon rivals often fall when the company announces a new initiative or expansion, only to recover once investors digest the the past few years, Amazon has built a large online business selling such staples as paper products, canned goods, pet food and health and beauty items. Those sales were supercharged when the pandemic forced many people to shop online for groceries and consumables for the first the company has been trying for years to figure out how to profitably sell fresh food, starting and killing a range of initiatives. The expansion of same-day delivery could theoretically help the online pioneer take on Walmart, which has made strides in its e-commerce operation in recent years and has thousands of stores that serve as pickup also has physical grocery stores, including Whole Food Market locations and supermarkets operated under the company's Fresh company's announcement that it's expanding food delivery follows a series of robust earnings reports from food- and restaurant-delivery companies, including Uber Technologies Inc., DoorDash Inc. and Instacart that all confirmed US consumers are sticking with their ordering habits, despite broader concerns about the economy. Amazon's grocery rivals have struggled to constrain food delivery expenses, passing some of the costs on to consumers in the form of service fees. Still, they have one huge advantage over the e-commerce giant: fleets of stores that serve as online pickup centres.
Bloomberg
20-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend: US GDP, Nike Preview
Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend with Tom Busby takes a look at some of the stories we'll be tracking in the coming week. - In the US – a look ahead to U.S GDP and personal spending data and Nike earnings. - In the UK – a look ahead to TheCityUK's annual conference. - In Asia – a look ahead to Bloomberg's China economic survey. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Guests: -Michael McKee, Bloomberg International Economics and Policy Correspondent, to preview next week's U.S GDP/personal spending data. - Poonam Goyal, Senior U.S. E-Commerce and Retail Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, to preview Nike earnings. -Leo Kehnscherper, Bloomberg European Asset Management Reporter, looks ahead to TheCityUK's annual conference. -Julian Harris, UK Economics Editor, looks ahead to TheCityUK's annual conference. - Eric Zhu, China Economist for Bloomberg Economics, discusses Bloomberg's China Economic Survey. -Karishma Vaswani, Bloomberg Opinion Columnist in Singapore, discusses her column: 'US Rethink on Australia Subs Is China's Win.'
CBC
18-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Lululemon cutting 150 corporate jobs as athleisure brand braces for tariff impact
Vancouver-based apparel company Lululemon Athletica Inc. is cutting about 150 corporate jobs as part of changes to its organizational structure, the retailer said Wednesday. The affected employees are part of its store support centres, a spokesperson for the company told CBC News in a statement. "As we continue to deliver on our strategy, we regularly assess our business operations to ensure we are well-positioned for the future," the spokesperson said. "Following a recent review, we have decided to evolve some aspects of our organizational structure to operate with more agility and further invest in our growth." The move comes as U.S. President Donald Trump's global tariff war ripples through supply chains and dents bottom lines. Trump's tariffs have taken particular aim at China — a key market for Lululemon — and several Middle Eastern and Asian countries that are meccas for clothing manufacturers. The cuts appear "aimed at streamlining costs and improving efficiency — likely aided by productivity gains from [artificial intelligence] — amid growing consumer uncertainty," wrote Bloomberg Intelligence retail analysts Poonam Goyal and Sydney Goodman. "The move may also help preserve margins as the company navigates more cautious spending among shoppers," they wrote. The analysts note this latest round of layoffs follows others made in 2024, when Lululemon closed a U.S. distribution centre, and in 2023, when it discontinued its connected fitness product, Mirror. Price increases coming The company is planning strategic price increases as it deals with U.S. tariffs, and will pass some of the costs along to its customers, it said in its first-quarter financial results earlier this month. The price increases on products are expected to be modest and will only apply to a few Lululemon products. However, they reflect the lengths the business is having to go to shield itself from Trump's trade war and the pressure it's putting on consumer spending, chief financial officer Meghan Frank told analysts on a June 5 call. The retailer lowered its profit expectations for the full year, estimating a more pronounced impact from expected tariffs. The company said diluted earnings per share are now expected to be between $14.58 US and $14.78 US for the year, down from earlier guidance for a range of $14.95 US to $15.15 US. Lululemon shares have plunged almost 29 per cent since the company reported its first-quarter earnings.
Bloomberg
28-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Temu and Shein to Pass All Of Trump Tariffs To US Shoppers
Discount Chinese retail Temu appears to be passing on almost all of Donald Trump's new import taxes to US consumers, more than doubling the cost of some products in a move that may add to concern about the inflationary impact of tariffs. And Shein has raised US prices of its products from dresses to kitchenware by as much as 377% ahead of imminent tariffs on small parcels. The supply shock could lead to empty shelves, higher prices, and significant layoffs in industries such as trucking, logistics, and retail, with some economists warning of "Covid-like" shortages. Bloomberg's Poonam Goyal reports. (Source: Bloomberg)
