February Business Inventories Rise 0.5%

usiness inventories rose 0.5% in February, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

When inventories and sales are growing, it usually means trucking is seeing additional demand to deliver goods and restock shelves.

The increase was in line with analysts’ estimates, Bloomberg reported, and followed a 0.9% gain in December. It brought the value of goods held by manufacturers, retailers and wholesalers to $1.29 trillion, Commerce said.

The inventory-to-sales ratio, which measures how long supplies will last at current demand levels, rose to 1.31 months from 1.3 months in January.

Retail inventories rose 0.3%, while retail sales excluding food services 0.4%.

Auto and parts dealer inventories were unchanged following a 0.6% decline the previous month, Commerce said.