From United Press International

WASHINGTON -- U.S. automotive stockpiles took the biggest dip in more than three years, declining 2.3 percent, to limit sharply the growth of wholesale inventories.

The auto inventory decline was the biggest since a 2.4 percent drop in December 2001, the Commerce Department reported Monday.

Wholesale inventories increased by 0.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted $346.71 billion, after climbing 0.6 percent in February, Dow Jones said.

Thomson First Call said economists had expected an increase of 0.9 percent.

Meanwhile, sales at the wholesale level rose 0.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted $291.49 billion, following a revised 0.5 percent drop in February, leaving the critical inventory to sales ratio unchanged from February's 1.19 percent.

Copyright 2005 United Press International. All Rights Reserved.

_______________________________________

Click here to view the rest of today's headlines.