–Wholesale Sales Up 0.9%, Inventory/Sales Ratio Falls To 1.20
–Excluding Petro, Wholesale Inventories Up Only 0.1%, Sales Flat
–Excluding Autos, Wholesale Inventories Up 0.6%, Sales Up 0.8%

By Kevin Kastner

WASHINGTON (MNI) – The value of wholesale inventories rose 0.5% in
August, while sales were up 0.9%, both driven higher by price-related
spikes in the value of petroleum inventories and sales, data released
Wednesday morning by the Commerce Department showed.

When a 9.4% jump in petroleum inventories is excluded, total
inventories were up only 0.1%. Likewise, when a 5.6% rise in petroleum
sales was excluded, total sales were roughly flat.

The overall inventory-to-sales ratio fell to 1.20 from 1.21 in July
as a result of the overall rise in sales being larger than the
inventories rise. The ratio was 1.17 in August 2011.

The value of durable inventories rose only 0.1% in the month, as
auto inventories were flat. The remaining durables components were
mixed, but there were large declines in inventories of computer
equipment and miscellaneous durables.

Nondurables inventories jumped 1.2% on the sharp petroleum gain,
but the remain component were generally lower, with the exception of
increases for drugs and farm products.

Durables goods sales rose 0.9%, led by a 2.0% rise in auto sales.
Every durable goods sales category was up except for a 0.5% decline in
metals sales.

Nondurable goods sales also rose 0.9% due to the sharp petroleum
sales rise. There were also increases for farm products and alcohol,
offset by declines in drugs, paper, apparel, and chemicals.

Excluding the auto category, wholesale inventories would have been
up 0.6% in August after a 0.7% rise in the previous month, an MNI
calculation showed. Sales would have been up 0.8% in August if auto
sales were excluded. This followed a 0.3% decline in July.

Before seasonal adjustment, total wholesale inventories were up
5.3% from August 2011, while total sales were up 1.8%.

Factory inventories rose 0.6% in August, based on data already
released, so the outlook for business inventory growth appears to be
strongly positive pending the retail inventories data when they are
released.

** MNI Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **

[TOPICS: MAUDS$,MT$$$$,M$U$$$,MAUDR$]