U.S. wholesale businesses increased their stockpile in October but their sales fell sharply, a government report showed Tuesday. The Commerce Department said stockpiles grew 0.6 percent in October, slower than the 1.1 percent growth in September, which was the biggest gain in nine months. Sales in October fell 1.2 percent, after rising 1.9 percent in September, the department said. Slower sales could force companies to cut back on restocking in coming months, which would slow growth in the October-December quarter. However, an increase in restocking leads to more factory production, which strengthens economic growth. Faster restocking helped lift growth in the July-September quarter to an annual rate of 2.7 percent.
