Manufactured goods orders increased by nearly 16% in May

New orders for manufactured durable goods rose 15.8%, or by $26.6 billion, to $194.4 billion in May, from April, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Census Bureau released Thursday (June 25) the advance report on durable goods manufacturers’ shipments, inventories and orders for May.

The rise in new orders for manufactured durable goods followed two consecutive monthly decreases, including an 18.1% decline in April. Excluding transportation, new orders rose 4%. Excluding defense, new orders increased by 15.5%. Transportation equipment increased 80.7%, or by $20.9 billion, to $46.9 billion and contributed the most to the rise in new orders after falling for two consecutive months.

Shipments of manufactured durable goods increased 4.4%, or by $8.4 billion, to $198.5 billion in May after declining for two consecutive months, including an 18.6% decrease in April. Transportation equipment increased 12.1%, or by $5 billion, to $46.5 billion, and it rose the most after being down for two consecutive months.

Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods rose 0.1%, or by $800 million, to $1.1 trillion in May following two consecutive monthly decreases, including a 1.5% decline in April. Transportation equipment rose by $300 million to $760 billion and increased the most after two consecutive monthly declines.

Inventories of manufactured durable goods rose 0.1%, or by $300 million, to $425.1 billion in May and have risen for three consecutive months. Transportation equipment rose 0.9%, or by $1.3 billion, to $144.1 billion and contributed the most to the rise in inventories and has increased in 22 of the past 23 months.

Nondefense new orders for capital goods rose 27.1%, or by $13.4 billion, to $62.8 billion. Shipments rose 0.4%, or by $300 million, to $63.5 billion. Unfilled orders fell 0.1%, or by $700 million, to $624 billion. Inventories rose 0.6%, or by $1.1 billion, to $191.2 billion. Defense new orders for capital goods rose 19.9%, or by $2.2 billion, to $13.3 billion. Shipments declined 0.1%, or by less than $100 million, to $12.4 billion. Unfilled orders rose 0.5%, or by $900 million, to $180 billion. Inventories fell 0.4%, or by $100 million, to $21 billion.