Orders for durable goods across the United States soared 4.6 percent in December, aided in large part by a double-digit increase in orders for transportation equipment, and far exceeding expectations, according to data released by the federal government today.
Orders increased $10 billion to $230.7 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau said. Orders for transportation equipment rebounded after two straight months of decreases, rising $8.1 billion, or 11.9 percent, to $75.9 billion.
Excluding transportation equipment, new orders increased 1.3 percent; excluding orders for defense-related products, new orders rose 1.2 percent.
The information is a key indicator of future manufacturing activity. In this case, rising demand could lead to more jobs to fulfill orders.
Meanwhile, factory shipments of manufactured durables rose 1.3 percent, or $2.9 billion, to $230.6 billion, coming on the heels of a 1.8-percent jump in November. It marked the fifth time in six months that shipments rose.
