US wholesale inventories surge in July

September 10, 2026 11:38 AM EDT

Warehouse workers deal with inventory stacked up to the ceiling at an ABT Electronics Facility in Glenview, Illinois, U.S. December 4, 2018. REUTERS/Richa Naidu/File Photo

WASHINGTON, Sept 10(Reuters) - ‌U.S. wholesale ​inventories ​surged in July, the government confirmed on Thursday, potentially positioning inventories to ‌contribute to economic growth in the third ⁠quarter.

Stocks at wholesalers jumped by an unrevised 1.3%, ‌the Commerce Department's Census ‌Bureau said. Inventories, a key part of gross domestic product, increased 0.4% in July. ​They rose 5.7% on a year-over-year basis in July.

Businesses are replenishing inventories, which have ⁠been drawn down for five straight quarters amid robust domestic ​demand. Inventories subtracted 0.72 percentage point from gross domestic product growth in the ​second quarter. The economy ‌grew at a 1.5% annualized rate last quarter.

Growth estimates for the July-September ⁠quarter are currently running well above a 2% pace.

The surge in wholesale inventories in July was ⁠driven by durable goods, which increased 1.1%. Stocks of ​nondurable goods shot up 1.6%, with petroleum inventories increasing 6.5%.

Sales at wholesalers rebounded 0.8% in July after ‌dropping 2.9% in June. At July's sales pace it would take 1.20 ‌months to clear shelves, up from 1.19 ⁠months in June. The ‌inventories/sales ratio ​was at 1.28 months in July 2025.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea ‌Ricci)



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