In the second quarter of 2023, the inventories of Swedish businesses experienced a reduction of 4.2 billion SEK (Swedish Krona) in constant prices compared to the preceding quarter. This decrease corresponds to a 0.7 percent decline in terms of volume.
However, the industrial sector witnessed an opposite trend as the total inventories increased by 5.9 billion SEK during the same period, indicating a rise of 2.1 percent in terms of volume. In contrast, the inventory of the retail trade sector declined by 10.1 billion SEK, reflecting a 3.3 percent reduction in volume.
This quarter saw a rise in the inventory of raw materials and supplies across the overall industrial sector, amounting to 5.9 billion SEK. Concurrently, the inventory of products in the process of being manufactured, finished goods, and trading goods remained steady. Consequently, the industrial sector’s overall inventories augmented by 5.9 billion SEK in Q2.
On the other hand, businesses in the retail trade sector curbed their inventories by 10.1 billion SEK in the same quarter. Notably, the retail sector experienced the most significant decline, with inventories shrinking by 6.6 billion SEK. Within the wholesale trade, inventories contracted by 4.4 billion SEK, while the motor trade sector observed a 0.9 billion SEK increase in inventories.
It’s important to mention that the figures for Q2 2023 are preliminary. Since the last publication, the change in industrial inventories for Q1 2023 has been revised upward by 1.3 billion SEK, reaching a total increase of 12.2 billion SEK. Similarly, the change in retail trade inventories for Q1 2023 has been revised upwards by 1.8 billion SEK to a total increase of 7.3 billion SEK.