New orders for manufactured durable goods increased for the third time in four months in May, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The $2.8 billion or 1.8 percent increase brought the new orders total for the month to $163.9 billion. New orders increased by 1.8 percent in April. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 1.1 percent. Excluding defense, new orders also increased 1.4 percent.
Shipments of manufactured durable goods decreased in May by $3.6 billion, or 2.1 percent. Shipments have decreased for 10 consecutive months.
