NZ wholesale trade rises 1.7% in 2nd-qtr - fifth straight quarterly gain

Thursday 7th September 2017

New Zealand wholesale trade pushed higher on quarter in the June quarter, with five of six wholesale industries reporting higher sales. It was the fifth consecutive quarterly gain.

Seasonally adjusted sales gained 1.7 percent in the three months ended June 30 versus a gain of 2.1 percent in the March quarter, Stats NZ said. Wholesale trade covers intermediary transactions between manufacturers and consumers, which feeds into the national accounts and is used by economists to predict wider economic activity.

"The June quarter's rise in total wholesaling was driven by basic material wholesaling and machinery and equipment wholesaling," said wholesale trade manager Sue Chapman.

Basic materials, which spans agricultural, mineral, metal and chemical, and timber and hardware goods and products, gained 3.4 percent, machinery and equipment was up 3.7 percent, motor vehicles rose 4.8 percent, while grocery, liquor and tobacco products rose 1 percent and the commission-based industry was up 4.7 percent. The only industry to fall was "other goods," which includes textiles, pharmaceuticals and furniture, and was down 1 percent.

Actual wholesale trade sales of $24.9 billion in the June quarter were up 6 percent on the year. The total value of wholesale stocks held at June 30 was $11.2 billion, up 6.7 percent from a year earlier. Stocks rose in all six industries with the wholesale stocks of cars, trucks, and parts rising at their fastest pace since 2008. The actual value of wholesale stocks of motor vehicle and parts held at June 30 was $2.1 billion, up 19 percent on the year.

(BusinessDesk)

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