WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- The U.S. Commerce Department said Monday wholesale inventories rose 1.1 percent in June to $309.46 billion after rising 1.4 percent in May.
The May rise was previously reported as rising 1.2 percent.
Wall Street economists had expected inventories to rise 0.7 percent during June.
Wholesale sales were unchanged in June at a seasonally adjusted $269.73 billion. That followed a revised 0.3 percent gain in May; sales for that month were initially estimated as rising 0.5 percent.
The inventory-to-sales ratio edged up to 1.15 in June from May's 1.13. The ratio measures how many months it would take for a firm to exhaust its current inventory.
Inventories of durable goods -- items meant to last three or more years -- rose 1.4 percent in June, while sales rose 0.5 percent. Inventories in the automotive area climbed 0.8 percent, metals went up 2.7 percent, and furniture increased 1.1 percent.
Machinery stocks advanced 2.4 percent -- the biggest rise since October 1995's 2.6 percent.
