After a recent rough patch, another solid month for durable goods may put manufacturing on the move once again. New orders for manufactured durable goods increased 3.6% to $231 billion for May, according to a Commerce Department report (link opens in PDF) released today.
After bumping up a revised 3.6% in April, May's new orders exceeded analyst expectations by 0.3 percentage points.
Source: Census.gov.
Although durable goods are on the rise, transportation accounted for most of May's gain. Up three of the last four months, new orders for transportation goods jumped 10.2%. Excluding this sector from overall movements, new orders for durable goods increased 0.7%. This, too, beat analyst expectations of a slight 0.1% slump.
Shipments of goods managed a slight 1.2% increase, also pushed primarily by a 3.6% rise in transportation equipment. Unfilled orders edged up 0.8% on similar gains from transportation, while inventories expanded 0.1% on a 0.8% increase in computer and electronic products supplies. On the heels of a 0.3% increase, inventories (once again) set a new record since data was first recorded in 1992.
