WASHINGTON - Business inventories rose 0.8% in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Sales rose 0.1%. The inventories to sales ratio was 1.26 for the month.
The median estimate of economists polled by Thomson Reuters was for a 0.9% increase in inventories.
Retail inventories rose 0.1%. Excluding autos, retail inventories were still up 0.1%. Auto inventories themselves rose 0.3%.
Wholesale inventories increased 0.8% in April. Manufacturers had the largest growth in inventories, rising 1.3%.
Year-over-year, total business inventories rose 10.6%. Manufacturers showed 12.3% growth. Wholesale inventories over the year were up 13.8%. Retailers had a 5.7% increase.
In the retail categories broken out by the Commerce Department in the April release, autos rose 0.3%, food and beverage stores were up 1.1%. Retail inventories at furniture, building materials, general merchandise and department stores all had declines for the month.
Year over year sales rose 11.0% from April 2010.
