U.S. Business Inventories Rise in January

Business inventories in the United States increased in January by 0.3%, following a 0.8% rise in December, data by the U.S. Department of Commerce showed on Tuesday.

Inventories declined by 1.8% compared with their level in January 2020.

Retail inventories declined by 0.5% in January, after rising by 1.7% in December.

Meanwhile, wholesale inventories leveled up by 1.3% in January.

Inventories at the manufacturing sector also rose by 0.1%.

Business sales surged by 4.7% in January, leading to a pace of sales that requires 1.26 months to consume all inventories, which is the shortest time since April 2012.