Research >> Economics
Wholesale Inventories unch% in July
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The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that July 2016 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $441.9 billion, down 0.4 percent (+/-0.4%)* from the revised June level and were down 1.0 percent (+/-0.9%) from the July 2015 level. The May 2016 to June 2016 percent change was revised from the preliminary estimate of up 1.9 percent (+/-0.5%) to up 1.7 percent (+/-0.6%). July sales of durable goods were up 0.2 percent (+/-0.5%)* from last month and were up 0.7 percent (+/-1.4%)* from a year ago. Sales of nondurable goods were down 1.0 percent (+/-0.5%) from June and were down 2.6 percent (+/-1.4%) from last July. Sales of petroleum and petroleum products were down 3.5 percent from last month and sales of beer, wine, and distilled alcoholic beverages were down 2.4 percent.
Total inventories of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations but not for price changes, were $591.3 billion at the end of July, virtually unchanged (+/-0.4%)* from the revised June level. Total inventories are up 0.5 percent (+/-1.8%)* from the revised July 2015 level. The June 2016 to July 2016 percent change was unrevised from the advance estimate of virtually unchanged (+/-0.4%)*. July inventories of durable goods were up 0.3 percent (+/-0.2%) from last month, but were down 1.8 percent (+/-1.6%) from a year ago. Inventories of professional and commercial equipment and supplies were up 1.4 percent from last month. Inventories of nondurable goods were down 0.3 percent (+/-0.5%)* from June, but were up 4.3 percent (+/-2.8%) from last July. Inventories of farm product raw materials were down 2.0 percent from last month, while inventories of chemicals and allied products were up 1.4 percent.
The July inventories/sales ratio for merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, based on seasonally adjusted data, was 1.34. The July 2015 ratio was 1.32.
Posted: September 9, 2016 Friday 10:00 AM