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Procter & Gamble ( PG ) to raise prices on a quarter of its

products

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Companies see full-year losses $7.1 billion-$8.3 billion -

Reuters analysis

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Some companies have big inventories, delaying price hikes

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Swatch hiked prices 5%, saw 'zero impact' on sales

By David Gaffen and Marleen Kaesebier

July 29 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is

getting his tariffs. Companies are making it clear how they

intend to deal with it - passing them on to American consumers.

Throughout the spring, big retailers and consumer product

makers warned that levies on imported goods would squeeze their

operations, forcing them to choose between lower earnings and

passing on higher costs to customers.

In the case of Procter & Gamble ( PG ) and others, it is

both of those things.

On Tuesday, the packaging giant, which makes household

basics spanning from Bounty paper towel to Tide detergent,

issued

a sour outlook for 2025 and sent a message to big retailers

like Walmart ( WMT ) that it would have to raise prices on some

U.S. goods from next week.

This challenge facing companies in coming quarters will

likely feed through to everyday consumers. P&G said it would

raise prices on about a quarter of its products in the U.S. to

help offset the cost of new tariffs.

Price hikes are in the mid-single digits across categories,

a spokesperson for the company said.

While U.S. stock indexes have soared to record highs this

year, built on massive investment in technology shares, many

consumer bellwethers have struggled.

Since Trump's April 2 "Liberation Day" tariff announcements,

P&G shares have declined 19%; Nestle is down 20%;

Kimberly-Clark ( KMB ) has lost 11%, and PepsiCo ( PEP ) is off

nearly 7%, while the benchmark S&P 500 stock index has

gained more than 13%.

Consumer goods, food and drink companies have struggled with

lackluster sales since the pandemic, as shoppers have balked at

increasingly expensive name-brand packaged food. Nestle said

last week that consumers in North America remained wary of

paying more at the cash register.

More price hikes will deepen investor worries about how big

brands are navigating the combined challenge of thrifty

consumers and hefty costs created by Trump's trade war.

"You're going to see companies like Walmart ( WMT ), Amazon, and

Best Buy ( BBY ) forced to pass price increases to consumers," said Bill

George, former chairman and CEO of Medtronic and executive

education fellow at Harvard Business School.

"Main Street has yet to see the fallout from increased

tariffs - and they're going to go higher."

Between July 16 and 25, companies in the Reuters global

tariff tracker said they expected to lose a combined $7.1

billion to $8.3 billion for the full year.

GM, Ford and other carmakers have absorbed the

cost of tariffs - totaling billions of dollars - so far.

Many companies shipped more goods and raw materials into the

U.S. before tariffs hit. Economists and analysts reckon that

hoarding has helped some delay hiking prices until later in the

year and explains why tariffs have not yet shown up in U.S.

inflation data.

Andrew Wilson, International Chamber of Commerce deputy

secretary general, estimates inflation will be felt once

companies have run down inventory, but that might not be until

the fourth quarter or first quarter of next year.

Others like Ray Ban-maker EssilorLuxottica have already

hiked prices.

Swiss watch and jewelry maker Swatch increased

prices by about 5% after Trump announced tariffs in April with

"zero impact" on sales, CEO Nick Hayek told Reuters recently.

High-end brands like Tissot watches are less price sensitive

to increases. Customers wanting to splash out on an expensive

watch might also buy abroad when travelling where taxes are

lower, he said.

"You cannot do this with cars. You cannot do this with

machines. But you can do this with watches. So it's not so

problematic for us," he said.