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Updated: 13-May-09 10:22 ET

March Business Inventories
Updated: 13-May-09 10:22 ET




Highlights

    Key Factors

      Big Picture

      • Business inventories include wholesale inventories, manufacturing inventories, and retail inventories.  Inventories are a component of GDP, and thus are of interest to economists, but the financial markets don't pay much attention to this release.  Over the long term, the inventory-to-sales ratio has been declining, due to improving techniques for inventory management.  Lately, the ratio has increased as sales have fallen faster than inventories.  Inventories are likely to decline over the near term to bring the ratio back into line with company desires.  Inventories will rise once sales pick up.
      Category MAR FEB JAN DEC NOV
      Inventories -1.0% -1.4% -1.2% -1.5% -1.0%
        Manufacturers -0.8% -1.3% -1.1% -1.9% -0.5%
        Retailers -0.7% -1.2% -1.6% -1.2% -1.7%
        Wholesalers -1.6% -1.7% -0.9% -1.2% -0.7%
      Sales -1.6% 0.0% -1.3% -3.4% -5.4%
        Manufacturers -1.2% -0.5% -2.6% -3.3% -6.5%
        Retailers -1.3% 0.3% 1.7% -3.5% -2.4%
        Wholesalers -2.4% 0.2% -2.4% -3.5% -6.9%
      Inventory/Sales 1.44 mo 1.44 mo 1.46 mo 1.46 mo 1.43 mo
        Manufacturers 1.46 mo 1.45 mo 1.46 mo 1.44 mo 1.42 mo
        Retailers 1.55 mo 1.54 mo 1.57 mo 1.62 mo 1.58 mo
        Wholesalers 1.32 mo 1.31 mo 1.34 mo 1.32 mo 1.29 mo