Inventories rose a small 0.3% in December.

The Commerce Department also reported that the sale of manufactured goods climbed 0.6% during the same month. Both government and private analysts said the figures showed that businesses were succeeding in getting bulging inventories under control. Many economists were concerned that economic growth could slow even further as businesses cut back on orders in an effort to work down excess inventories. However, those fears were eased by the small inventory increase in December.