August U.S. Durable Goods Orders Show Promising 0.2% Rise, Core Jumps 0.4%

Highlights

• August durable goods orders rise 0.2%.
• Excluding defense, orders drop 0.7%.
• Machinery sector up by 0.5%.

U.S. Durable Goods Orders: A Closer Look

In a recent announcement by the U.S. Census Bureau, August saw a promising uptick in new orders for manufactured durable goods. With an increase for five out of the past six months, the latest figures displayed a growth of $0.5 billion, or 0.2 percent, culminating in a sum of $284.7 billion. This advancement emerges after July’s notable 5.6 percent decline.

Transportation’s Impact

When we take transportation out of the equation, the rise in new orders is slightly more pronounced at 0.4 percent. This factor shines a spotlight on the transportation sector’s influence on the broader durable goods market, emphasizing its role in the economic landscape.

Defense and Its Role

On the other hand, if we exclude defense-related orders, the picture appears a tad less rosy. New orders, when defense is taken out of the mix, saw a dip of 0.7 percent. This illustrates the importance and weight of defense orders in the overall statistics.

Machinery Leads the Charge

One sector that stood out in August was machinery. Recording growth in four of the last five months, machinery orders jumped by $0.2 billion or 0.5 percent, reaching $37.8 billion. This sector’s resilience and continued growth are worth noting for potential investors and stakeholders.

What Lies Ahead

Given the mixed signals from different sectors, a cautiously optimistic outlook seems appropriate. While machinery demonstrates strength, the ebb and flow of defense and transportation orders suggest market watchfulness.