Orders for Manufactured Goods Inched Up 0.1% in December

Washington, DC, February 27, 2019--New orders for manufactured goods in December, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, increased $0.3 billion or 0.1% to $499.9 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported.

This followed a 0.5% November decrease.

Shipments, down three consecutive months, decreased $0.9 billion or 0.2% to $504.9 billion. This followed a 0.5% November decrease.

Unfilled orders, also down three consecutive months, decreased $0.9 billion or 0.1% to $1,180.3 billion. This followed a 0.2% November decrease.

The unfilled orders‐to‐shipments ratio was 6.55, down from 6.58 in November. Inventories, down two consecutive months, decreased $0.1 billion or virtually unchanged to $681.5 billion. This followed a 0.1% November decrease. The inventories‐to‐ shipments ratio was 1.35, unchanged from November.