–Retail Auto Inventories Down 0.4%, Retail Inv Excl. Auto Up 0.7%
–Business Sales Up 1.1% in December On Gains At Every Level
By Kevin Kastner
WASHINGTON (MNI) – The value of business inventories rose in
December for the twelfth straight month, with the increase larger than
expected due to a strong reading for retail inventories, data released
Tuesday morning by the Commerce Department showed.
The 0.8% rise in business inventories was stronger than the 0.6%
gain expected, with retail inventories up 0.4% despite at 0.4% decline
in motor vehicle and parts inventories.
The remaining retail categories combined for a 0.7% rise, the
largest monthly increase for that category since March 2010. Sales were
up in all the nonauto categories, with clothing store inventories up
1.3% and department store inventories up 1.0% during the holiday season.
The 0.4% rise in retail inventories was in addition to the already
reported 1.1% rise in factory inventories and the 1.0% rise in wholesale
inventories.
Overall business inventories would have been up 1.0% in December if
the drop in retail motor vehicle inventories was excluded, based on a
Market News International calculation.
Business sales rose 1.1% in December on gains at every distribution
level. Sales were up sharply from year ago, running 8.8% ahead of their
December 2009 pace before seasonal adjustment and 8.7% after seasonal
adjustment.
At the same time, inventories were 8.4% above their year-ago levels
before seasonal adjustment and up 8.0% after seasonal adjustment.
In December, the inventory-to-sales ratio held steady at 1.25, and
was down slightly from the 1.26 ratio in December 2009.
With monthly sales gains outpacing inventory growth, the data,
especially the inventory/sales ratio, suggest that businesses are
cautiously holding the line against overstocking despite signs of sales
improvement.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
[TOPICS: MAUDS$,MT$$$$,M$U$$$,MAUDR$]
