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U.S. wholesale inventories revised down in June as sales post steepest drop since 2020

U.S. wholesale inventories revised down in June as sales post steepest drop since 2020

A 0.6% drop in nondurable goods inventories, led by petroleum, cut the June stockpile estimate while wholesale sales fell 3.0% and the dollar strengthened on higher oil prices.

Fact Check
The Reuters primary report and WTVB/Finimize corroborations confirm the core claims: a 0.6% drop in nondurable goods inventories led by petroleum (-3.9%), the June stockpile estimate cut (inventories revised down to +0.2% from +0.3%), and wholesale sales falling 3.0%. The claim's headline framing 'revised down in June' is consistent with the estimate revision. The characterization 'steepest drop since 2020' for sales is not explicitly confirmed in the fetched sources and the 'dollar strengthened on higher oil prices' detail is peripheral and unverified in these economic-data reports, which slightly tempers full confidence. The quantitative substance is strongly supported.
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Summary

U.S. wholesale inventories rose 0.2% in June, revised down from a 0.3% preliminary estimate, as a 0.6% decline in nondurable goods stocks led by a 3.9% drop in petroleum offset a 0.6% gain in durable goods such as automobiles, computer equipment, hardware and machinery. Wholesale sales fell 3.0% from May, the steepest drop since April 2020, after a 3.4% increase in May, or 3.5% as cited by Reuters, pushing the inventory-to-sales ratio to 1.19 months from 1.15. The figures point to softer final demand even as business inventories have been drawn down for five straight quarters and remained a drag on second-quarter GDP growth. The dollar nevertheless strengthened after the release, with USD/JPY briefly rising from 157.82 to 158.26 as higher crude prices supported expectations the Federal Reserve could keep policy tighter for longer.

Terms & Concepts
  • Nondurable goods: Products such as fuel or other consumables that are used up relatively quickly.
  • Durable goods: Longer-lasting manufactured items such as vehicles, machinery and computer equipment.
  • Inventory-to-sales ratio: A measure of how long existing inventories would last at the current pace of sales.