Amazon CEO Andy Jassy Says Tariffs Are Starting to Drive Up Product Prices

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said consumers are beginning to feel the effects of higher prices as sellers respond to increased costs tied to tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.

Speaking with CNBC, Jassy explained that Amazon and many of the platform’s third-party sellers had built up inventory ahead of the tariffs to help keep prices steady. However, he said much of that inventory was depleted by last fall.

“So you start to see some of the tariffs creep into some of the prices, some of the items, and you see some sellers are deciding that they’re passing on those higher costs to consumers in the form of higher prices, some are deciding that they’ll absorb it to drive demand and some are doing something in between,” Jassy said. “I think you’re starting to see more of that impact.”

The comments mark a change from last year, when Jassy said prices had largely remained stable following Trump’s tariff announcements.

On Tuesday, Jassy noted that while Amazon is working to keep prices down, price increases may be unavoidable in some cases.

“At a certain point, because retail is, as you know, a mid-single digit operating margin business, if people’s costs go up by 10%, there aren’t a lot of places to absorb it,” Jassy said. “You don’t have endless options.”

Even with the added pressure from tariffs, Jassy said consumers have remained relatively resilient. He observed that some shoppers are opting for lower-priced items and focusing more on deals, while others are delaying discretionary purchases of higher-end products.