U.S. Business Inventories Decreased in November

U.S. business inventories declined 0.2% in November from the previous month, the Commerce Department said Thursday. That matched expectations of economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. Here are the report's key takeaways:

--Breaking down by sector, factory inventories rose 0.3% in November compared with the prior month. Retail inventories declined 0.8%, and wholesale inventories were down 0.1% on the month.

--The overall inventories-to-sales ratio in November was 1.39, compared with 1.40 in October. It had been 1.37 in November 2018.

--Thursday's figures will be incorporated into the Commerce Department's estimate of fourth-quarter U.S. gross domestic product. In the third quarter, inventories subtracted from economic growth.