U.S. Durable Goods Orders Unchanged In December After Surging In November

(RTTNews) - With a pullback in orders for transportation equipment offsetting strength in other sectors, new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods unexpectedly came in unchanged in the month of December, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday.

The report said durable goods orders were virtually unchanged in December after surging by an upwardly revised 5.5 percent in November.

Economists had expected durable goods orders to jump by 1.1 percent compared to the 5.4 percent spike that had been reported for the previous month.

The unexpectedly flat reading on durable goods orders came as orders for transportation equipment fell by 0.9 percent in December after soaring by 15.3 percent in November.

Excluding the decrease in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders increased by 0.6 percent in December after climbing by 0.5 percent in November. Ex-transportation orders were expected to inch up by 0.2 percent.

The growth in ex-transportation orders partly reflected sharp increases in orders for electrical equipment, appliances, and components and primary metals, which surged by 1.8 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively.

The report also showed a 0.9 percent jump in orders for fabricated metal products as well as modest growth in orders for computers and electronic products and machinery.

The Commerce Department also said orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a key indicator of business spending, rose by 0.3 percent in December after jumping by 1.0 percent in November.

Shipments in the same category, which is the source data for equipment investment in GDP, also inched up by 0.1 percent in December after slipping by 0.2 percent in November.