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Economy in Brief
Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Growth Continues; Pricing Pressure Eases
The Philadelphia Federal Reserve reported that its General Factory Sector Business Conditions Index dipped to 22.2 during October...
U.S. Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance Ease
Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell to 210,000 (-8.7% y/y) during the week ended October 13...
U.K. Retail Sales: Doing Well-As-Can-Be-Expected Despite September Drop
U.K. retail sales and growth have all held up remarkably well- so far...
U.S. Housing Starts Decline
Total housing starts fell 5.3% during September to 1.201 million units (AR)...
U.S. Mortgage Loan Applications Continue to Decline As Interest Rates Rise
The MBA total Mortgage Applications Index fell 7.1% (-23.3% y/y) in the week ending October 12...
by Tom Moeller July 16, 2007
After deceleration through April, total business inventories in May rose 0.5% following a 0.4% increase the month prior. The increases were sufficient to raise the three month growth rates. Consensus expectations had been for a 0.3% one month rise.
Three month average growth in business inventories rose to 0.8%, its highest since last October.
Business sales jumped 1.3% (4.0% y/y). Wholesale sales led the gain with a 1.3% (8.7%y/y) jump and retail sales surged 1.6% (4.9% y/y) for May. Factory shipments rose 1.0% for the second month.
Due to the strong sales gain in May, the inventory to sales ratio fell to its lowest level since last August.
Retail inventories rose 0.6%, double the rise in April. General merchandise inventories halved their April rise with a 0.4% (6.6% y/y) but clothing store inventories surged 0.7% (8.1% y/y) after a 0.2% April decline. Furniture inventories fell 0.7% (-0.2% y/y) after no change during April. Auto inventories fell for the fourth straight month.
| Business Inventories | May | April | Y/Y | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0.5% | 0.4% | 4.0% | 5.9% | 6.2% | 7.9% |
| Retail | 0.6% | 0.3% | 1.6% | 3.2% | 2.8% | 6.8% |
| Retail excl. Autos | 0.7% | 0.4% | 4.3% | 4.5% | 4.5% | 7.2% |
| Wholesale | 0.5% | 0.3% | 6.7% | 8.6% | 7.4% | 9.7% |
| Manufacturing | 0.3% | 0.4% | 4.3% | 6.4% | 7.9% | 7.7% |
