US wholesale inventories drop by unrevised 0.5% in December

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. wholesale inventories fell in December amid strong sales growth, government data showed on Friday.

Stocks at wholesalers decreased by an unrevised 0.5%, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau confirmed, matching the consensus forecast of economists polled by Reuters.

Inventories, a key part of gross domestic product, fell 0.1% on a year-on-year basis in December.

Private inventory investment was a big drag on GDP in the fourth quarter, restricting economic growth to a 2.3% annualized rate. The economy grew at a 3.1% pace in the July-September quarter.

Sales at wholesalers increased 1.0% in December after rising 0.9% in November. At December's sales pace it would take wholesalers 1.31 months to clear shelves, down from 1.33 in November.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)

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