By Sarah Chaney 
 

WASHINGTON--U.S. business inventories were unchanged in August from the previous month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected a 0.2% increase in August from the prior month.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

--Breaking down by sector, factory inventories were flat in August compared with the prior month. Retail inventories fell 0.1%, and wholesale inventories were up 0.2% on the month.

--The overall inventories-to-sales ratio in August was 1.40, the same as in July. It had been 1.35 in August 2018.

--Wednesday's figures will be incorporated into the Commerce Department's calculation of third-quarter U.S. gross domestic product, due out at the end of the month. Forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers estimated Friday that third-quarter growth would log in at a 1.4% annual rate, down from a 2.0% pace in the second quarter.

Write to Sarah Chaney at sarah.chaney@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 16, 2019 10:15 ET (14:15 GMT)