What to Watch Friday: Wholesale Trade Is a Critical Economic Indicator

For Friday October 9, there are several key reports coming out showing us how the economy is doing so far. We start off the day with import and export prices coming out at 8:30 am Eastern, and then New York Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart is set to speak in New York at 9:15 a.m. Last, at 10 a.m., we expect wholesale trade numbers to come out. Economists are expecting 0.1% increase for the month of August. The report shows three things to investors: monthly sales, inventories and the inventory to sales ratio. TheStreet's Portfolio Analyst Scott Berman said the wholesale trade report for the month of July was ‘a bit disappointing,’ since the numbers were positive for June. He expects August numbers to be positive and added that it’s a ‘key input into the GDP calculation for the third and fourth quarter.’ TheStreet's U-Jin Lee reports in New York.