us wholesale inventories declined in january for the first time since mid2020 suggesting merchants are liquidating their stocks amid weakening demand according to data from the commerce department published tuesday the stock of unsold goods held by wholesalers decreased 04 in january compared with the previous month after increasing 01 in december its first decline since july 2020 when the economy was recovering from the first wave of the covid19 pandemic the reading matches expectations from economists polled by the wall street journal wholesale inventories data isnt adjusted for inflation inventories of durable goods fell by a marginal 01 on month dragged by sharper drops in furniture and lumber products nondurable goods inventories fell 09 with a 55 decline in apparel despite the monthly fall inventories grew 158 in january compared with the same month a year earlier the commerce departments data showed the ratio of inventories to saleswhich hints at how many months it would take for wholesalers to clear their inventories at the current sales ratewas 134 in january down from 136 in december but up from 120 recorded the same month a year earlier the ratio increased significantly during 2022 as inventories grew and sales moderated