US Wholesale Inventories Rise More than Expected

US wholesale inventories rose 0.3% month-over-month to $945.9 billion in June 2026, matching an upwardly revised 0.3% increase in May and exceeding market expectations of a 0.2% gain. According to preliminary data, inventories increased for a fifth consecutive month, supported by a 0.7% rise in durable goods stocks after a 0.2% increase in the previous month. Meanwhile, nondurable goods inventories fell 0.4%, reversing May's 0.4% gain. On an annual basis, wholesale inventories were up 4.4%.

US wholesale inventories rose 0.1% month-over-month to $941.8 billion in May 2026, following a 0.7% increase in April and below a 0.3% gain in the advance estimate. The latest reading marked the third consecutive month of slower inventory growth after a 1.5% increase in March, the strongest since mid-2022. Compared with a year earlier, wholesale inventories were 4.0% higher, accelerating from an upwardly revised 1.2% increase in May 2025. Meanwhile, the inventories-to-sales ratio for merchant wholesalers, excluding manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, stood at 1.15 on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from 1.31 in May 2025.

US wholesale inventories increased by 0.3% month-over-month to $943.9 billion in May 2026, following a 0.7% rise in April and above market forecasts for a 0.2% gain, advance data showed. This marked the fourth consecutive monthly increase in wholesale inventories, but the pace moderated from March, which saw the strongest growth since August 2022. Stocks of durable goods rose by 0.3%, after a 0.9% increase in April, while those of nondurables rose by 0.5%, after a 0.3% advance in the prior month. On a yearly basis, wholesale inventories rose by 4.3%.