Durable Goods Orders Outside Transportation Rise

Washington, DC, July 29, 2009--Orders for durable goods outside the transportation sector rose by 1.1 percent in June, better than the flat performance economists expected.

However, when including transportation, orders tumbled in June by the largest amount in five months.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that orders for durable goods fell 2.5 percent last month, much larger than the 0.6 percent decline that economists had expected. It was the biggest setback since a 7.8 percent fall in January.

Much of the weakness reflected a 38.5 percent decline in orders for commercial aircraft.

Orders for motor vehicles and parts fell by 1 percent in June after an even larger 8.7 percent drop in May.

The strength last month came in demand for primary metals such as steel, which rose by 8.9 percent, and industrial machinery, which was up 4.4 percent.

The strength outside of transportation could be a harbinger of better days ahead for manufacturing, which has struggled to cope with the severe U.S. recession plus the worst global downturn since the Great Depression, weakness that has severely dampened demand in many of America's major export markets.