Business Inventories Up 0.5% in February

Washington, DC, April 14—Business inventories rose 0.5% in February while business sales were off 0.4%, according to the Commerce Department.

The drop in sales was the largest since April 2003

In January, inventories rose 0.9% and sales increased 0.5%.

The inventory-to-sales ratio in February rose to 1.31 from a record low 1.30 in January. The typical business has about 40 days of sales on hand in the backroom

Economists had forecasts inventories to rise about 0.6%.

Inventories at manufacturers grew 0.5% in February after a record 1.5% increase in January. Manufacturers’ sales fell 0.9% in February.

Inventories at wholesalers increased 0.6% while sales fell 0.4.