Distrib. Trade Sales & Manu. Shipments Down Slightly in December

Washington, DC, February 14, 2020-The combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for December was estimated at $1,461.0 billion, down 0.1% from November 2019 but up 1.7% from December 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Manufacturers’ and trade inventories for December, adjusted for seasonal variations but not for price changes, were estimated at an end-of-month level of $2,040.0 billion, up 0.1% from November 2019 and were up 2.2% from December 2018.

The total business inventories/sales ratio based on seasonally adjusted data at the end of December was 1.40. The December 2018 ratio was 1.39.