Wal-Mart asks suppliers to lower prices

Wal-Mart is cracking down on its suppliers.

The world's largest retailer sent a 10-page letter to its suppliers warning them of its new "zero-tolerance policy" if they violate global sourcing standards. It also requires more mandatory inspections and a pre-approval process.

The letter states that starting March 1, Wal-Mart will "terminate its relationship with any supplier engaging in unauthorized subcontracting” when it's sourcing merchandise, according to Renee Dudley at Bloomberg.

Previously, Wal-Mart utilized a three-strike policy.

"Obviously our three-strike policy wasn't working as well as it could have," RajanKamalanathan, Wal-Mart's VP of ethical sourcing, told The Wall Street Journal's Shelly Banjo. "Our message of zero tolerance is meant to get people's attention."

Wal-Mart will also start publishing the names of factories that aren't allowed to do business with its suppliers sometime later this year.

It's bringing in garment suppliers to its Bentonville HQ on January 24 to talk about all of the changes.

The move is in response to a horrific fire at a factory in Bangladesh that killed more than 120 people. Wal-Mart clothing was found at the scene.

Source: Yahoo Finance