U.S. Factory Orders Rise 1.8% In November, More Than Expected

(RTTNews) - With orders for transportation equipment showing a notable rebound, the Commerce Department released a report on Monday showing that new orders for U.S. manufactured goods rose by slightly more than expected in the month of November.

The report said factory orders increased by 1.8 percent in November following a revised 0.5 percent decrease in October.

Economists had expected orders to rise by 1.6 percent compared to the 0.9 percent drop that had been reported for the previous month.

The increase in factory orders was partly due to a jump in orders for transportation equipment, which surged up by 8.3 percent in November after falling by 3.5 percent in October.

Orders for non-defense aircraft and parts and ships and boats showed significant increases after falling in the previous month.

Excluding the increase in orders for transportation equipment, factory orders rose by 0.6 percent in November compared to a 0.1 percent uptick in October.

The report said orders for durable goods increased by 3.4 percent in November, reflecting a modest downward revision from the 3.5 percent growth previously reported.

Orders for non-durable goods edged up by a much more modest 0.3 percent in November after falling by 0.3 percent in October.

The Commerce Department also said shipments of manufactured goods rose by 1.0 percent in November following a 0.1 percent increase in October.

Meanwhile, inventories of manufactured goods came in essentially unchanged for the second consecutive month.

The inventories-to-shipments ratio subsequently dipped to 1.28 in November from 1.29 in October.