Economy

Durable Goods Orders Surprise With Decline in December

January 27, 2017

Durable goods orders had an unexpected drop in December, falling 0.4 percent from November. Economists at Wall Street Journal had anticipated a 2.3 percent increase in overall orders.

Defense related goods drove most of the decline with a 64 percent decrease in orders for defense aircraft. Orders minus transportation increased 0.5 percent. Core goods, nondefense capital goods minus aircraft, gained 0.8 percent for a third consecutive monthly increase and contributed to the 1.9 percent increase in fourth quarter GDP.

The report from the Economics and Statistics Administration is reprinted below:

Advance Report on Durable Goods Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories and Orders – December 2016

New Orders. New orders for manufactured durable goods in December decreased $1.0 billion or 0.4 percent to $227.0 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This decrease, down two consecutive months, followed a 4.8 percent November decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.5 percent. Excluding defense, new orders increased 1.7 percent. Transportation equipment, also down two consecutive months, drove the decrease, $1.7 billion or 2.2 percent to $73.7 billion.

Shipments. Shipments of manufactured durable goods in December, up three of the last four months, increased $3.3 billion or 1.4 percent to $238.0 billion. This followed a 0.3 percent November increase. Transportation equipment, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, led the increase, $2.0 billion or 2.5 percent to $82.3 billion.

Unfilled Orders. Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in December, down six of the last seven months, decreased $7.2 billion or 0.6 percent to $1,119.4 billion. This followed a 0.3 percent November decrease. Transportation equipment, also down six of the last seven months, drove the decrease, $8.6 billion or 1.1 percent to $759.8 billion.

Inventories. Inventories of manufactured durable goods in December, up five of the last six months, increased less than $0.1 billion or virtually unchanged to $384.4 billion. This followed a 0.2 percent November increase. Machinery, up four of the last five months, drove the increase, $0.4 billion or 0.5 percent to $66.4 billion.

Capital Goods. Nondefense new orders for capital goods in December increased $2.4 billion or 3.8 percent to $66.6 billion. Shipments increased $1.2 billion or 1.8 percent to $71.7 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $5.1 billion or 0.7 percent to $691.8 billion. Inventories increased $0.6 billion or 0.3 percent to $171.1 billion. Defense new orders for capital goods in December decreased $4.8 billion or 33.4 percent to $9.5 billion. Shipments decreased $0.1 billion or 1.2 percent to $10.9 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $1.3 billion or 0.9 percent to $140.9 billion. Inventories decreased $0.2 billion or 0.7 percent to $20.7 billion.

Revised November Data. Revised seasonally adjusted November figures for all manufacturing industries were: new orders, $457.5 billion (revised from $458.3 billion); shipments, $464.3 billion (revised from $463.8 billion); unfilled orders, $1,126.5 billion (revised from $1,127.8 billion) and total inventories, $623.3 billion (revised from $623.1 billion).