| Article ID: | iaor19911315 |
| Country: | Netherlands |
| Volume: | 19 |
| Issue: | 1/3 |
| Start Page Number: | 189 |
| End Page Number: | 195 |
| Publication Date: | May 1990 |
| Journal: | Engineering Costs and Production Economics |
| Authors: | West Kenneth D. . |
Casual examination of annual postwar data on inventories and aggregate output for seven developed countries-Canada, France, West Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, United States-suggests that in these countries the primary function of aggregate inventories is not to smooth aggregate output in the face of aggregate demand shocks. Japan is a possible exception to this generalization.