Orders for U.S. Non-Transport Durable Goods Jump Most in a Year
By Alex Kowalski - Feb 27, 2013 8:30 AM ET
Orders for U.S. durable goods excluding transportation gear climbed in January by the most in a year, indicating business investment is holding up.
Bookings for equipment meant to last at least three years minus demand for things such as aircraft, which is often volatile, climbed 1.9 percent, exceeding the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg and the most since December 2011, Commerce Department data showed today in Washington. Total orders dropped more than projected, reflecting the biggest slump in defense bookings in a decade.
Healing overseas markets, sustained demand for automobiles and leaner inventories are combining to stabilize manufacturing beyond the monthly swings in aircraft orders. Further strides in the industry combined with a rebounding housing market would support Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s view that the economy will pick up after cooling at the end of 2012.
“Globally, sentiment measures from the factory sector seem to have strengthened,” Mike Englund, chief economist at Action Economics LLC in Boulder, Colorado, said before the report. “In the U.S., we will see continued growth in the equipment sector.”
Total orders slumped 5.2 percent, the first decline since August. The median forecast of 78 economists surveyed by Bloomberg projected a 4.8 percent decrease. Estimates ranged from a decline of 8.3 percent to a gain of 3 percent. Last month’s drop followed a 3.7 percent gain in December that was initially reported as 4.3 percent.
more:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-27/orders-for-u-s-non-transport-durable-goods-jump-most-in-a-year.html
| 
