Walmart Shifts US Import Focus , From China to India .
NBC reports that Walmart has begun importing
more goods to the United States from India
as it reduces its reliance on China. .
According to data seen by Reuters, the world's
largest retailer is looking to cut costs, while also
diversifying the company's international supply chain.
Between January and August of 2023,
one quarter of Walmart's U.S. imports were
shipped from India, compared to just 2% in 2018.
According to bill of lading figures shared with Reuters by
data firm Import Yeti, 60% of the company's imports came from
China over the same period of time, down from 80% in 2018.
NBC reports that the shift illustrates how escalating tensions
between the U.S. and China have encouraged companies to
begin sourcing imports from India, Thailand and Vietnam.
We want the best prices.
That means I need resiliency
in our supply chains. , Andrea Albright, Walmart’s executive vice president of sourcing, via NBC.
I can’t be reliant on any one supplier
or geography for my product because
we’re constantly managing things
from hurricanes and earthquakes
to shortages in raw materials, Andrea Albright, Walmart’s executive vice president of sourcing, via NBC.
Andrea Albright, Walmart’s executive
vice president of sourcing, said that India has
become a key component of the company's
plan to build its manufacturing capacity.
The company currently imports about
$13 billion in goods from India annually. .
In 2020, Walmart committed to import
$10 billion of goods from India annually by 2027.
According to Albright, the company
is on track to hit that goal.