Wholesale sales declined 0.5% to $61.4 billion in June following eight consecutive monthly increases. Declines were recorded in five of seven subsectors, led by the food, beverage and tobacco subsector and the motor vehicle and parts subsector.

In volume terms, wholesale sales decreased 0.7% from May to June.

In the second quarter of 2017, current dollar wholesale sales increased 2.5% while constant dollar sales increased 1.7%. For both current and constant dollars, the increase in sales in this quarter was the fifth consecutive quarterly increase.

In dollar terms, the food, beverage and tobacco subsector reported the largest decline in June, as sales decreased 1.0% to $11.9 billion. This was mainly due to lower sales in the food industry, which decreased 1.1% and offset most of the 1.2% gain observed in May. For the subsector, June's decline was the first in five months.