Washington, Dc, November 16, 2005--Sales rose faster than inventories in September, leading stockpiles of goods to fall to record low levels, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.
Inventories at U.S. businesses rose 0.5% in September, while sales jumped 0.6%. As a result, the inventory-to-sales ratio, an indication of demand, tightened to a record 1.25 months.
The increase in inventories in September was larger than expected. Economists were expecting inventories to rise 0.3% in September.
Sales rose a revised 0.7% in August, while inventories rose 0.4%.
Retail inventories, which rose 0.9% for the second straight month, led by higher auto inventories as sales of cars and trucks fell off in the month.
Retail auto inventories rose 2.1%, the largest gain since June 2004. Excluding autos, retail inventories rose 0.4% in September.
The inventory-to-sales ratio in retail rose to 1.46 months from 1.45 months.
In September, manufacturing sales fell 0.5%, while inventories slipped 0.1%. The inventory-to-sales ratio rose to 1.18 from 1.17.
For wholesalers, sales rose 2.4% while inventories rose 0.6%. The inventory-to-sales ratio fell to 1.15 in September from 1.17 in August.
