Economy
Durable Goods Orders Up 1.8% in January
Written by Sandy Williams
February 27, 2017
Durable goods orders grew 1.8 percent in January, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The increase was due mostly to a jump in orders for commercial and military aircraft, up 70 percent and 60 percent, respectively. Core capital goods (non-military goods excluding aircraft) fell 0.4 percent after a larger than expected gain of 1.1 percent in December. Core capital goods are considered an indicator of future business investment.
The report from the Department of Commerce is reprinted below:
February 27, 2017 — The U.S. Census Bureau announces the January advance report on manufacturers’ shipments, inventories and orders:
New Orders
New orders for manufactured durable goods in January increased $4.0 billion or 1.8 percent to $230.4 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This increase, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, followed a 0.8 percent December decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders decreased 0.2 percent. Excluding defense, new orders increased 1.5 percent. Transportation equipment, also up following two consecutive monthly decreases, drove the increase, $4.3 billion or 6.0 percent to $76.4 billion.
Shipments
Shipments of manufactured durable goods in January, down following two consecutive monthly increases, decreased $0.2 billion or 0.1 percent to $238.3 billion. This followed a 1.6 percent December increase. Machinery, also down following two consecutive monthly increases, drove the decrease, $0.5 billion or 1.6 percent to $30.7 billion.
Unfilled Orders
Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in January, down seven of the last eight months, decreased $4.0 billion or 0.4 percent to $1,114.3 billion. This followed a 0.7 percent December decrease. Transportation equipment, also down seven of the last eight months, drove the decrease, $5.6 billion or 0.7 percent to $752.9 billion.
Inventories
Inventories of manufactured durable goods in January, up two of the last three months, increased $0.1 billion or virtually unchanged to $383.8 billion. This followed a 0.1 percent December decrease. Computers and electronic products, up three of the last four months, drove the increase, $0.2 billion or 0.5 percent to $42.7 billion.
Capital Goods
Nondefense new orders for capital goods in January increased $2.4 billion or 3.6 percent to $69.0 billion. Shipments decreased $0.3 billion or 0.4 percent to $71.9 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $2.9 billion or 0.4 percent to $688.7 billion. Inventories decreased $0.3 billion or 0.2 percent to $170.4 billion. Defense new orders for capital goods in January increased $0.8 billion or 8.0 percent to $10.4 billion. Shipments increased less than $0.1 billion or 0.2 percent to $11.0 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $0.6 billion or 0.4 percent to $140.3 billion. Inventories increased $0.3 billion or 1.6 percent to $21.1 billion.
Revised December Data
Revised seasonally adjusted December figures for all manufacturing industries were: new orders, $464.6 billion (revised from $464.9 billion); shipments, $476.8 billion (revised from $475.8 billion); unfilled orders, $1,118.3 billion (revised from $1,119.5 billion) and total inventories, $625.7 billion (revised from $625.6 billion).
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Economy
CRU: Will US tariff policy be transactional or transformational?
The Trump 1.0 tariffs appeared to have little positive effect on the US manufacturing, partly because they hurt export competitiveness.
Beige Book finds mixed demand trends, tariff concerns
Manufacturing activity exhibited slight to modest increases across a majority of districts. However, manufacturers expressed concerns over the potential impact of looming trade policy changes between late January and February.
Construction spending drops marginally in January
Construction spending edged down slightly in January, slipping for the first time in four months. The US Census Bureau estimated spending at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,196 billion in January, down 0.2% from December’s downward revised rate. The January figure is 3.3% higher than a year ago. January’s result, despite the slight erosion, […]
ISM: Manufacturing expansion slowed in February
The Manufacturing PMI registered 50.3% in February. That’s 0.6 percentage points lower compared to the 50.9% recorded in January.
Chicago Business Barometer up but still pointing to weak conditions
The Chicago Business Barometer rose to an eight-month high in February. Despite the recovery, the measure continues to indicate deteriorating business conditions, as it has for over a year.