Inventories Rise in January: Business inventories resumed...

Inventories Rise in January: Business inventories resumed their slow growth in January after a one-month decline, the Commerce Department said, but analysts said the 0.2% gain confirms sluggishness in the manufacturing economy. The increase would have been larger except that auto manufacturers trimmed production to let dealers draw down their swollen inventories of unsold cars from late 1989. Inventories totaled a seasonally adjusted $795.9 billion, including a steep 0.7% jump in manufacturing backlogs.