P. M. BRIEFING : Inventories Climb as Sales Plunge

Business inventories rose 0.5% in February while sales plunged 0.9% in their steepest decline in more than two years, the government said today.

The Commerce Department said inventories held on shelves and backlots climbed to a seasonally adjusted $763.6 billion in February following a 0.8% increase in January.

Business sales, meanwhile, dropped to a seasonally adjusted $507.3 billion in February after rising 1.1% during the previous month. February’s decline was the first dip since sales fell 0.2% in November, 1987, the month after the stock market crash, and marked the steepest drop since a 3% decline in January, 1987.

If increases in inventories are not accompanied by rising sales, analysts worry that the result could be production cutbacks that hold down economic growth.