Wholesale Trade Has Flat March Quarter

Wholesale Trade Has Flat March Quarter

Wholesale trade sales had just a modest rise in the March 2018 quarter, after seven consecutive quarterly rises, Stats NZ said today.

The seasonally adjusted total sales value for wholesale trade rose 0.1 percent in the March 2018 quarter, following a strong 2.9 percent rise in the December 2017 quarter.

“Three of the six wholesaling industries had sales rises in the March 2018 quarter, but they were offset by falls in the other three industries,” wholesale trade manager Sue Chapman said.

The largest industry increase was in other goods wholesaling, up 3.3 percent ($127 million) from the December 2017 quarter when adjusted for seasonal effects.

Other goods wholesaling includes clothing and footwear, pharmaceutical and toiletry goods, and paper products.

Basic material wholesaling had the largest decrease in sales value in the latest quarter, down 1.7 percent ($100 million). This fall follows a year of strong increases for this industry; the largest was a 6.5 percent rise in the December 2017 quarter.

Basic material includes other agricultural products, hardware goods, metal and mineral, petroleum, and timber wholesaling.

The actual value of total wholesale trade sales was $24.8 billion in the March 2018 quarter, up $1.4 billion (6.0 percent) from the March 2017 quarter.

Vehicles and parts sales down and stocks up

Wholesale sales values for motor vehicles and parts, including cars and trucks, fell 2.1 percent ($58 million) in the March 2018 quarter, after a 6.4 percent rise in the December 2017 quarter.

“The fall for motor vehicles and parts wholesaling coincided with a recent dip in the retail sales of vehicles and parts,” Ms Chapman said.

Retail trade survey: March 2018 quarter showed that sales for motor vehicles and parts fell in both value and volume.

Although sales fell for motor vehicles and parts wholesaling, their stocks continued to rise. At 31 March 2018, the actual value of wholesale stocks of motor vehicles and parts was $2.2 billion, up $360 million (19 percent) when compared with 31 March 2017.

For more information about these statistics:

• Visit Wholesale trade survey: March 2018 quarter

ENDS

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