Inventories at U.S. businesses rose
0.3 percent in November, a third straight gain, as wholesalers
and retailers tried to keep more goods on hand to meet increases
in demand, a government report showed.
The jump in stockpiles at manufacturers, retailers and
wholesalers to $1.187 trillion, the highest since June 2001,
followed a 0.4 percent climb in October, the Commerce Department
said in Washington. Sales jumped 0.5 percent to $879.8 billion
after a 0.7 percent gain the month before.
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Companies such as Bath & Body Works are expanding stockpiles
as they grow more confident they can sustain sales as the economy
gathers strength. Heading into a holiday selling season in which
retailers including Target Corp. sold 5.2 percent more than a
year ago, merchants boosted inventories by 0.7 percent in
November, the same as the month before, the government said
today.
“We’re seeing pretty strong order growth and production
growth to keep supply strong,” said Wesley Beal, an economist at
IDEAglobal in New York, before the report.
Bloomberg News
