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Highlights
Wholesale inventories rose 0.5 percent in May, well under the 1.3 percent rise in sales at the wholesale level. But the data are skewed by low refinery production. The value of petroleum inventories fell 3.4 percent in the month in contrast to sales which rose 5.3 percent. The stock-to-sales ratio for petroleum, at 0.31, is the lowest in nearly three years. Inventories for petroleum products, data released mid-morning each Wednesday, have been unusually low and are a big factor in the current rise in oil prices. The overall stock-to-sales ratio, again pushed down by petroleum, slipped 1 tenth to a record low 1.11.
But a look at durables tells a different story, up 0.6 percent in the month for inventories but down 0.5 percent for sales. Year-on-year, inventories of durables are up 5.0 percent, above the 4.2 percent gain for sales.
Lean inventories are important for economic health and today's data are a bit clouded. Business inventories on Friday will include data at the retail level.
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