WHOLESALE INVENTORIES DECLINE

Wholesale inventories decline. Opposite of retailing.  What is causing decline? More to the story?




Wholesale inventories fall for third month in row

By Jeffry Bartash

Published: Feb 9, 2016 10:14 a.m. ET

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Companies slowed restocking of goods toward end of 2015

By

JeffryBartash

Reporter

Bloomberg

Wholesale inventories decline again in December.

Inventories at U.S. wholesalers fell in December for the third straight month, another sign companies cut back on restocking toward the end of 2015 amid softer sales.
Inventories dropped 0.1% to a seasonally adjusted $582 billion, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Annualized growth in restocking slowed to 1.9% from a 6% pace early last year.
Sales for wholesalers fell 0.3% in December. From December 2014 to December 2015, wholesale sales sank 4.5%, mostly because of less demand for metals used in an array of goods.

The ratio of inventories to sales was unchanged at 1.32. The number measures how many months it would take for a company to sell off its current inventory.
In November, wholesale inventories were revised to show a 0.4% decline instead of 0.3%.