Wholesale inventories higher in July

U.S. wholesale inventories rose by 0.7 percent from June to July to a seasonally adjusted $485.2 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau said Wednesday. Wholesalers' sales dipped slightly to $402.4 billion in July, down 0.1 percent from a revised June level, but were up 2.7 percent from July 2011, the Commerce Department agency said in a release. Sales of petroleum and petroleum products were down 2 percent while sales of farm product raw materials rose 5.6 percent, the bureau said. July sales of durable goods were down 0.8 percent from the previous month, but were up 2.6 percent from a year ago. Sales of machinery, equipment, and supplies were down 1 percent from June. Sales of non-durable goods were up 0.5 percent from June and up 2.8 percent from last July. While inventories rose 0.7 percent from June to July, they were up 5.3 percent from the July 2011 level, statistics indicated. Lower levels were reported for inventories of petroleum and petroleum products, which the Census Bureau said were down 0.7 percent from June and down 13.7 percent from July 2011. Inventories of beer, wine and distilled alcoholic beverages rose 3 percent month to month and rose 13 percent from last July. July inventories of durable goods were up 0.7 percent from June. Inventories of hardware, and plumbing and heating equipment and supplies were off 0.8 percent from June. Inventories of non-durable goods were also up 0.7 percent from the previous month. They are up 0.5 percent from July 2011. The July inventories-to-sales ratio for wholesalers, seasonally adjusted, was 1.21, the bureau said. The July 2011 ratio was 1.18.