World’s richest family loses $27 billion

The family behind US discount retailer Walmart has seen its fortune tumble after an absolute bloodbath on the stock market yesterday.

The Walton family lost $27 billion in just one day.

The family behind Walmart lost $US19 billion ($27 billion) on Tuesday, after a stock market bloodbath saw prices tumble 11.4 per cent.

It was the biggest loss in almost 35 years, and it hit the Walton family – Jim, Alice and Rob Walton, the children of the store’s late founder Sam – hard.

The siblings, together with Sam’s daughter-in-law Christy and her son Lukas, own nearly half of the retail behemoth, and have a combined net worth of $US212 billion ($302 billion), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Walmart is struggling after soaring inflation put pressure on the retailer’s profit margins in the first quarter - tempting the discount outlet’s appetite to raise prices.

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There is expected to be an increase in prices.

Rob Walton (left) and Jim Walton (right), alongside their sister Alice, are the children of the chain’s late patriarch. Picture: Supplied

USA billionaire Alice Walton. Picture: Supplied

The company’s ethos centres around providing discounted products during tough times for customers.

However chief executive officer Doug McMillon confirmed some prices of items would rise. His goal is to raise prices while staying below competitors and limiting price bumps on entry-level food items.

“Price leadership is especially important right now,” he said.

The retailer said earnings are likely to drop 1 per cent this year.

In the first quarter, adjusted profit sank to $US1.30 a share, below the lowest of 29 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Shelves were emptied at the retailer during the pandemic. Picture: AFP.

One of the supermarket’s biggest budget competitors is an Australian favourite, Aldi.

News.com.au’s New York Correspondent walked the aisles to see how Aldi’s prices compared to Walmart’s.

The US prices in Aldi, as you’d expect, are cheap as chips. Price comparisons with Walmart showed most prices – although notably not all – were a modicum cheaper at the German discounter.

Mince was $US5.09 ($7.14) per pound at Aldi compared to Walmart’s $US5.77. You could pick up an avocado for 89 US cents rather than 94 cents at Walmart, and a half gallon of milk came in at $US2.20, a few cents below the $US2.36 at its rival.

The same strategy in Australia of smaller stores, fewer staff, easy to stack shelves, massive barcodes and registers where customers have to pack everything themselves allows Aldi to shave off the pennies.