U.S. Wholesale Sales Slow, But Rise In Canada

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Meanwhile, here are the major economic headlines from the last week:

• The U.S. Department of Commerce revised July’s wholesale inventory growth to 0.2 percent, down from the initially estimated 0.3 percent. Excluding autos, wholesale inventories grew 0.1 percent and sales at wholesalers rose 1.1 percent. Read the full report at this link.
• Wholesale sales in Canada expanded 0.4 percent between June 2024 and July 2024 and 1.1 percent from July 2023 to July 2024. Sales increased in four of the seven subsectors, led by the agriculture supplies industry group and the food, beverage, and tobacco subsector.
• The National Federation of Independent Business’s (NFIB) Small Business Optimism Index fell by 2.5 points in August to 91.2. August was the index’s 32nd consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. The NFIB’s uncertainty index rose to 92, its highest level since October 2020. Inflation remains the top issue among small business owners, with 24 percent of owners reporting it as their top operating issue.
• The number of people who applied for U.S. unemployment benefits for the first time stood at 230,000 during the week that ended Sept. 7, a figure that was up by 2,000 from the week before. Averaged over the past four weeks, first-time claims rose slightly to 230,750. In all, nearly 1.85 million people claimed jobless benefits during the week that ended Aug. 31.
• In other economic news: U.S. import prices declined 0.3 percent in August while export prices fell 0.7 percent; the U.S. Consumer Price Index increased 0.2 percent between July 2024 and August 2024 and 2.5 percent from August 2023 to August 2024; the U.S. Producer Price Index was up 0.2 percent between July and August and 1.7 percent year-over-year.