In August 2025, U.S. business inventories held steady from the previous month, following a downward revision of a 0.1% increase in July. This data diverged from market expectations, which had anticipated a 0.1% rise. Inventories in both the manufacturing and merchant wholesaling sectors showed no change, in contrast to their respective increases of 0.2% and 0.1% in July. Meanwhile, retail inventories experienced a slight decrease of 0.1%, following a 0.1% increase in the prior month. On an annual scale, overall business inventories experienced a 1.1% increase in August.