US Wholesale Inventories Fall By 0.8% In December

US wholesale inventories unexpectedly fell 0.8% to $383.57 billion in December, prompting analysts to suggest higher-than-expected growth in the economy in the fourth quarter. Wall Street was expecting an increase in December wholesale inventories by 0.5%. The revised November wholesale inventories have risen 1.6%, the largest upturn since July 2004.

Wholesale sales in the US in December climbed 0.8%, figures released by the Commerce Department showed today. Additionally, the shift towards the aggressive slashing of inventories in the first nine months of 2009 by companies with an aim to get rid of excess supply accumulated during the recession helped them achieve a 5.7% annualized rate gross domestic product growth in the fourth quarter.

At the current pace, wholesalers would take only 1.12 months to deplete the amount of goods on hand. A reduction in the supply of goods in hand allows companies to buy more goods, aiding in production. The inventory-to-sales ratio in November 2009 was 1.14 and in December 2008 the figure stood at 1.32.

In the wholesale sector, the basic materials industry gained 0.78%, electronics added 0.32% and computers moved up 0.63% today. Meanwhile, the food whole industry moved 1.17% and industrial equipment climbed 1.29% at 1:33 p.m.

The best performing stock in each of the underlying industry is:
Grainger WW Inc (NYSE: GWW) gained 2.47% to $101.00.
G Willi-Food International (NASDAQ: WILC) rose 1.95% to $6.79.
Brightpoint Inc (NASDAQ: CELL) added 2.48% to $7.02.
Interline Brands Inc (NYSE: IBI) climbed 1.63% to $16.80.