The Commerce
Department reported on Tuesday that the U.S. business inventories advanced 0.3
per cent m-o-m in April, following a downwardly revised 0.2 per cent m-o-m fall (from -0.1 per cent
m-o-m) in March. That was in line with economists’ expectations.
According to
the report, stocks at retailers climbed 0.7 per cent m-o-m in April, while inventories
at merchant wholesalers and those at manufacturers edged up 0.1 per cent m-o-m.
In y-o-y terms,
business inventories jumped 1.0 per cent in April.