Pre-owned business jet inventories rose by 10 percent last month and are now 57 percent above year-ago levels, according to a report issued yesterday by UBS Investment Research. “Used inventories have been building steadily since the end of 2007 and in October reached a fourth consecutive all-time high at 2,564 aircraft,” noted UBS aerospace analyst David Strauss. Most concerning, the increase continues to be led by aircraft less than 10 years old, a category that rose by 18 percent between this September and October, taking it to more than double the number in October last year. At 15 percent of the in-service fleet, total pre-owned business jet inventories are approaching the 17-percent peak of late 2002, “with young used already well above prior peak levels.” New-aircraft delivery positions for sale last month were up 19 percent from the previous month and were four times the year-ago levels. Thirty-one of the 176 delivery slots on the market are for Eclipse 500s, most likely influenced by several industry analysts’ prediction that Eclipse Aviation will fold early next year. However, UBS believes that “the increase in delivery slots available for sale [also] reflects a combination of reduced customer demand and difficult financing conditions as the run-up in aircraft values that had driven many of the recent listings is reversing.”