The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that Walmart posted the slowest sales in years in its home market as consumers worried about their finances tightened their wallets. A New York Times dispatch to The Globe says comparable sales at Walmart's U.S. stores rose 2.6 per cent in its most recent quarter, the retailer reported Thursday, its slowest growth in more than six years. The company's stock fell about 9 per cent in morning trading, erasing tens of billions of dollars in market value in its steepest daily decline since 2022. The world's largest retailer had been on a roll, with cost-conscious shoppers flocking to its stores in search of deals in an uncertain economy. Walmart said lower drug prices brought on by regulatory changes dragged down its U.S. sales last quarter. Still, the company raised its outlook for sales and profit for the full fiscal year. Company executives said the business saw shoppers' behaviour change when the national average price of gasoline surpassed $4 (U.S.) a gallon in July, an indication that American consumers were feeling more pressure than they did at the beginning of the year. In addition, delinquencies on credit cards, auto loans and student debt are on the rise.