Walmart expects smaller profit drop in 2022 as discounts drive demand

Walmart Inc on Tuesday forecast a smaller drop in full-year profit than previously projected, after deep discounts to clear excess merchandise and a drop in fuel prices helped it beat expectations for quarterly sales.
 

The retailer spooked markets across the globe last month when it slashed its profit forecast and warned that consumers were pulling back on discretionary purchases at a far greater pace than feared as higher prices for everything from toothpaste to gas hampered their spending power.

That forced Walmart to make steep price cuts on items such as apparel to try to reduce more than $61 billion worth