President Donald Trump’s administration ripped Amazon for reportedly planning to show the cost of his tariffs alongside items for online buyers.
Immediately after speaking with Trump, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said he called it ‘a hostile and political act by Amazon’.
The world’s largest online retailer, founded by Jeff Bezos, was considering displaying the cost of Trump’s tariffs next to each item for sale, Punchbowl News reported. About 70% of Amazon products are sourced from China, which has been hit with a 145% duty, according to Wedbush Securities.
Leavitt said in a briefing on Tuesday: ‘Why didn’t Amazon do this when the Biden administration hiked inflation to the highest level in 40 years?
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‘This is another reason why Americans should buy American.’
Leavitt said Amazon’s apparent plans were ‘not a surprise’ and held up a 2021 Reuters report stating that the retail giant followed China’s request to remove reviews on a book with its President Xi Jinping’s speeches.
She claimed that Amazon ‘partnered with a Chinese propaganda arm’.
Amazon shares dropped over 2% in premarket trading after Leavitt’s comments.
An Amazon spokesperson later said that the company was only thinking about showing the tariff cost on its budget section, Amazon Haul.
‘The team that runs our ultra low cost Amazon Haul store has considered listing import charges on certain products,’ the spokesperson told CNBC
‘This was never a consideration for the main Amazon site and nothing has been implemented on any Amazon properties.’
The White House’s scathing remarks on Amazon come just a few months after Bezos donated to Trump’s inaugural fund and attended his swearing-in ceremony in Washington, DC.
In the run-up to the 2024 election, Bezos was accused of quashing an endorsement for Trump’s opponent Kamala Harris, by the editorial board of the Washington Post, which he owns.
Asked if Bezos is ‘still a Trump supporter’, Leavitt replied: ‘Look, I will not speak to the president’s relationships with Jeff Bezos, but I will tell you that this is certainly a hostile and political action by Amazon.’
Hours later, Amazon indicated that the tariffs cost would not be shown, and Trump while departing the White House for his rally in Michigan celebrating the first 100 days of his second term credited Bezos.
‘Jeff Bezos was very nice. He was terrific. He solved the problem very quickly and he did the right thing,’ the president said. ‘He’s a good guy.’
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