Walmart shoppers are filling their gas tanks with less than 10 gallons for the first time since 2022, and its CFO calls it ‘an indication of stress’

Walmart shoppers are feeling the crunch of higher prices at the pump, and it could be a sign of where the economy is heading.

Walmart CFO John David Rainey said during the retailer’s latest quarterly earnings call this week shoppers were filling their gas tanks with fewer than 10 gallons of gas on average for the first time since 2022.

“That’s an indication of stress,” he said during the call. 

While high-income customers are doing fine and spending robustly, he said, the same can’t be said about lower-income consumers.

“The lower-income consumer is more budget conscious and perhaps navigating financial distress,” he added. 

Rainey’s comments come as the national average for gas prices stood at $4.55 Friday, a whopping 42% increase from a year ago. As of this week, the price of gas in all 50 states was above $4, and as high as $6 in California.

The war in Iran has upended global supply chains and nearly ceased oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 million barrels flowed daily before the war. In total, Americans have spent $44.8 billion more than they usually would on gas and diesel since the war started in February, translating to about an extr...