--US March business inventories -0.3%; sales -0.3%
--US March inventory/sales ratio unchanged at 1.37
--US March retailer inventories -0.3%; autos -1.3%
--US March retail durable stock/sales ratio at 1.93; Feb 1.95
--US March retail non-durable stock/sales ratio at 1.11; Feb 1.10

By Andrew Williams
Washington, May 14 (BridgeNews) - A continued decline in stocks at auto dealers helped push U.S. business inventories down 0.3%, the second straight monthly drop. The decline in inventories at factories, wholesalers and retailers was slightly weaker than the consensus estimate for a 0.2% decline.
Business sales fell 0.3%, leaving the inventory-to-sales ratio unchanged at 1.37 in March.
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This is the first time inventories have declined for two consecutive months since January-February 1992, a Commerce Department aide said. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, inventories at retailers were down 0.3%.
In a survey of 20 economists by BridgeNews, the spread of estimates for the December business inventories ranged from down 0.5% to up 0.3%. The retail inventory figure provides the final snapshot of U.S. inventory activity for the month. As previously reported, factory inventories declined 0.6% (Story .4733), while wholesale inventories gained 0.1% (Story .4708).

RETAIL INVENTORY LEVELS
In the retail sector, automotive stocks fell 1.3%, after having been reported down a revised 1.8 % in February. Excluding autos, retail inventories were up 0.1%.

STOCK-TO-SALES RATIO
Retailers' inventories/sales ratio was unchanged at 1.45 for March. Within retail, the durable goods ratio fell to 1.93, from 1.95 in February, while the non-durable goods ratio rose to 1.11 from the prior month's unchanged 1.10.