Moderate rise in March quarter for wholesale trade

Wholesale trade sales were up in the March 2019 quarter after a slight fall in the December 2018 quarter, Stats NZ said today.

The seasonally adjusted total sales value for wholesale trade rose 0.7 percent in the March 2019 quarter, following a 0.2 percent fall in the December 2018 quarter.

"Four of the six wholesaling industries had sales rises in the March 2019 quarter," wholesale trade manager Sue Chapman said.

The largest industry increase was machinery and equipment wholesaling, up $118 million (2.2 percent) from the December 2018 quarter when adjusted for seasonal effects. This includes agricultural and construction machinery, computers, and electrical and electronic goods.

"The machinery and equipment wholesaling industry bounced back after a softer than usual December quarter," Ms Chapman said.

Basic material wholesaling had the second largest increase, up $68 million (1.1 percent).

Basic material includes: agricultural supplies, hardware goods, petroleum, timber, and metal and mineral wholesaling.

Grocery, liquor, and tobacco products had the largest decrease in sales value in the latest quarter, down $32 million (0.4 percent).

The actual value of total wholesale trade sales was $26 billion in the March 2019 quarter, up $1.3 billion (5.2 percent) from the March 2018 quarter.