April US business inventory data
- The March reading was +0.4% (revised to +0.3%)
- Business sales +0.9% vs +0.2% prior (largest since Feb 2014)
- Inventory-to-sales ratio 1.40 months vs 1.41 months prior
- Inventories ex-autos -0.2% (largest drop in nearly a year)
The small rise in inventories will be a small hit to GDP estimates but the jump in sales will boost growth and inventories in May, June and beyond.
Inventories have been a drag on growth for the past three quarters but still remain relatively high.
Business inventories: