By Granth Vanaik
(Reuters) - Costco Wholesale said on Wednesday it would hike annual membership fees for the first time in seven years for its U.S. and Canada customers, effective Sept. 1.
The retailer's memberships offer a range of incentives to customers, including testing of free samples, discounts on food, gas, home insurance, travel and grocery items and an annual 2% reward on qualified purchases at its warehouses.
The annual fee, last raised in June 2017, would increase by $5 to $65 for "gold star" and business members and to $130 from the earlier $120 for executive members, the company said.
Costco said the maximum annual 2% reward associated with executive membership will also increase to $1,250 from $1,000.