When factories and businesses cut back on inventory it tells the real story about the economy. Yet somehow major businesses and the wealthiest people in America are giving money to the Bush re-election campaign in astronomical and record numbers. "Wall Street economists" expected a GAIN in inventory, not a decrease. Hmmmm, if only I were a smarter guy and could figure it all out like President Bush...I'd be a rich man.


Wholesale Inventories Dip 0.3 Pct in May

Wed Jul 9, 6:03 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Inventories at U.S. wholesalers unexpectedly fell for a second straight month in May, the government said on Wednesday, as sales also sagged.

The Commerce Department said wholesale stocks dipped 0.3 percent in the month, as inventories of durable goods -- those meant to last three or more years -- and non-durable products slipped. Wall Street economists had expected inventories to post a 0.2 percent gain after a revised 0.3 percent slide in April.

Wholesale sales also slid. They fell by 0.5 percent after a revised 2.5 percent decline in April, the biggest drop in Commerce's records.

The wholesale inventories report provides a look at the supply situation in one of three major sectors of the economy. Factory inventories fell by 0.1 percent in May, Commerce reported earlier in the month. Inventories at retailers will be reported in the business inventories report on July 16.

Mickey Levy and Peter Kretzmer, economists with Banc of America Securities in New York, said the numbers showed businesses remain wary of being caught with too much inventory on hand.

"The behavior of inventories indicates continued caution on the part of businesses, uncertain about the path of demand and unwilling to hold ... stocks of goods," the economists said in a note to clients...







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