The Commerce Department released a report on Wednesday showing a continued surge in U.S. business inventories in the month of June.
The report showed business inventories shot up by 1.4 percent in June after surging by an upwardly revised 1.6 percent in May. The continued jump in inventories matched economist estimates.
Retail and wholesale inventories led the way higher, spiking by 2.0 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively, while manufacturing inventories rose by 0.4 percent.
“Businesses continue to navigate a challenging restocking environment given a slowdown in goods demand while supply chains remain snarled and persistent inflation continues to pressure interest rates higher,” said Mahir Rasheed, U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.
He added, “We anticipate firms will continue replenishing their stockpiles, though the rate at which inventories are restocked will slow over the coming months.”
The Commerce Department said business sales also leapt by 1.3 percent in June following a 1.0 percent jump in May.
Wholesale sales surged by 1.8 percent, while manufacturing sales shot up by 1.1 percent and retail sales advanced by 0.8 percent.
With sales and inventories both showing significant increases, the total business inventories/sales ratio in June was unchanged from the previous month at 1.30.
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