WASHINGTON, May 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday criticized retail giant Walmart for suggesting price hikes as a result of the soaring tariffs, demanding it "eat the tariffs" instead of passing them on to customers.

"Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain," Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social media site. "Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected."

He urged Walmart, the largest U.S. retailer to "EAT THE TARIFFS" and keep prices down. "I'll be watching, and so will your customers," he wrote.

Walmart is known for selling affordable goods and has over 4,000 stores nationwide. Its chief executive Doug McMillon said on Thursday that the newly imposed tariffs, even at their recently reduced levels, would soon force it to start raising prices.

"We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible," he pledged, but cautioning that the company would not be able to "absorb all the pressure" imposed by the tariffs.

In a statement after Trump's post, Walmart spokeswoman Molly Blakeman said: "We have always worked to keep our prices as low as possible and we won't stop. We'll keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can given the reality of small retail margins."

According to the company's chief financial officer John David Rainey, a third of Walmart's products come from abroad.

Besides Walmart, several other retailers such as Target and Best Buy have already warned of potential price increases due to higher tariffs.

Wells Fargo economists pointed out in a report that the core Consumer Price Index has increased 2.8 percent over the past 12 months and at a 2.1 percent annualized rate over the past three months, which "marks a continuation of a slow but steady trend toward lower inflation in the United States."

"However, higher tariffs threaten to derail this trend," they said. "Our expectation is that prices for goods including vehicles and apparel will rise in the coming months." ■