Research >> Economics
Wholesale Inventories up 0.1% in September
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The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that September 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 $444.9 billion, up 0.2 percent (+/-0.4%) from the revised August level and were up 0.4 percent (+/-1.1%) from the September 2015 level. The July 2016 to August 2016 percent change was unrevised from the preliminary estimate of up 0.7 percent (+/-0.5%). September sales of durable goods were up 0.2 percent (+/-0.7%) from last month and were up 0.2 percent (+/-1.8%) from a year ago. Sales of electrical and electronic goods were up 1.5 percent from August, while sales of hardware, plumbing and heating equipment and supplies were down 2.4 percent. Sales of nondurable goods were up 0.1 percent (+/-0.5%) from August and were up 0.5 percent (+/-1.2%) from last September. Sales of petroleum and petroleum products were up 5.0 percent from last month, while sales of farm product raw materials were down 12.0 percent.
Total inventories of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations but not for price changes, were $590.2 billion at the end of September, up 0.1 percent (+/-0.2%) from the revised August level. Total inventories are down 0.1 percent (+/-1.9%) from the revised September 2015 level. The August 2016 to September 2016 percent change was revised from the advance estimate of up 0.2 percent (+/-0.4%) to up 0.1 percent (+/-0.2%). September inventories of durable goods were down 0.4 percent (+/-0.4%) from last month and were down 1.9 percent (+/-1.6%) from a year ago. Inventories of motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies were down 1.7 percent from last month. Inventories of nondurable goods were up 0.9 percent (+/-0.4%) from August and were up 2.7 percent (+/-3.3%) from last September. Inventories of petroleum and petroleum products were up 3.8 percent from last month and inventories of drugs and druggists' sundries were up 3.3 percent.
The September inventories/sales ratio for merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, based on seasonally adjusted data, was 1.33. The September 2015 ratio was 1.33.
Posted: November 9, 2016 Wednesday 10:00 AM