Further growth in manufacturing stocks

Manufacturers’ stocks of finished products were 15 percent up in August 2011 on August 2010. Growth was more substantial than in the preceding months. The stocks of finished products index (2005=100) stood at 110.3 in August, versus 107.2 in July.

Stocks of finished products in manufacturing industry (volume)

Manufacturers’ slightly more sombre about stocks

The Business Sentiment Survey for the Manufacturing Industry provides a first indication for further development of the index stocks of finished products. In this survey, manufacturers are invited to define their current stocks of finished products as too large (negative), normal, or too small (positive) in relation to projected sales. These results are available two months earlier than data on stocks of finished products.

Manufacturers’ opinions on their stocks deteriorated slightly in October. Manufacturers reporting their stocks as too large outnumbered those saying they were too small. The balance of positive and negative answers was -5, versus -4 in September. In July, the figure reached the lowest level in more than two years (-7).

Opinions on stocks of finished products