WASHINGTON - Amazon said on Tuesday its low-cost Haul unit had considered listing import charges for goods in light of new US tariffs but denied looking at such a plan for its main website, after the White House accused it of a hostile political act.

The Seattle retailer spent a chaotic morning denying a report from Punchbowl News that it planned to display prices showing tariffs' impact on Amazon.com. 

The confusion initially prompted a 2 percent drop in Amazon shares after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the reported pricing plan "a hostile and political act by Amazon." Amazon denied the initial story.

The company said its smaller Haul division, which competes for low-cost buyers with Temu and Shein, had mulled displaying import levies. "The team that runs our ultra low cost Amazon Haul store considered the idea of listing import charges on certain products. This was never approved and (is) not going to happen," a company spokesperson said, adding that "teams discuss ideas all the time."

Amazon shares recovered losses and were up slightly in afternoon trading.

President Donald Trump has imposed a tsunami of tariffs on US trading partners. Trump called Amazon founder and executive chairman Jeff Bezos to complain about the Punchbowl News report, a White House official said.

"Jeff Bezos is very nice," Trump told reporters. "He solved the problem very quickly. He did the right thing."

Automakers and others have said new tariffs could drastically hike the cost of consumer goods.

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Trump was a frequent critic of Bezos during the Republican's first term, particularly over what he said was unfair coverage by The Washington Post, which Bezos owns.

Bezos and Amazon have appeared to try to reconcile with Trump including by buying a documentary about first lady Melania Trump for $40 million, contributing to the president's inaugural fund and showing episodes of Trump's reality show The Apprentice on Prime Video.

The strategy to remain in the White House's good graces seemed to have been working. In a March interview with The Atlantic that was published Friday, Trump said of Bezos, "He's 100 percent. He's been great."

"So, this is another reason why Americans should buy American," Leavitt said, underscoring the Trump administration's efforts to shore up critical supply chains and boost domestic manufacturing.

The White House tweeted a link to the Reuters report earlier Tuesday. The White House did not immediately comment after Amazon denied the tariffs report.