Merchant wholesalers posted a 1.4% increase in inventories in July, while sales dipped 0.3% in the month, according to data released yesterday by the Commerce Department.
Inventories of merchant wholesalers grew to $441.3 billion, following a downwardly revised 0.9% increase to $435.1 billion in June, originally reported as a 1.1% increase to $435.9 billion.
Meanwhile, sales of merchant wholesalers slid to $410.6 billion, following June’s revised 3.0% increase to $412.0 billion, originally reported as a 2.8% rise to $411.2 billion.
Economists polled by IFR Markets predicted a 0.7% increase in wholesale inventories and 1.5% growth in wholesale sales.
