U.S. business inventories came in at a seasonally adjusted $2.043 trillion in October, up from a revised $2.039 trillion recorded in the previous month, the U.S. Census Bureau reported.

The 0.2% month-over-month increase in business inventories, which followed a revised 0.1% decrease in September, was in line with the consensus estimate of economists polled by Econoday.

Inventories held by manufacturers edged up 0.1% on a monthly basis, slower than the 0.3% growth rate recorded in the previous month.

Retailers' and merchant wholesalers' inventories gained 0.3% and 0.1%, respectively. In September, retailers' inventories edged up by a revised 0.1%, while merchant wholesalers' inventories declined by a revised 0.7%.

In October, total U.S. business sales fell 0.1% month over month to $1.456 trillion.

The inventory-to-sales ratio, which indicates the number of months it would take for businesses to clear shelves, remained unchanged month over month at 1.40 in October.