US durable goods rose 0.8% in Sept on aircraft

29 October 2008 15:10  [Source: ICIS news]

WASHINGTON (ICIS news)--New orders for US durable goods rose 0.8% in September largely on the strength of aircraft orders but otherwise saw a decline of more than 1%, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.

The department said that new orders for manufactured durable products rose to $207.8bn (€164.2bn) last month, marking the fourth overall increase in the data series in the last five months.

In August, durable goods orders had declined by a sharp 5.5%, which was revised downward from the original 4.5% estimate.

Durable goods are manufactured products meant to last three years or more and include such items as automobiles, appliances, transportation and manufacturing equipment.

Many durable goods, such as computers and automobiles, are major downstream markets for chemicals and chemicals-based products used in manufacturing processes or as end-product components.

The increase in new orders for September was due almost solely to a 6.3% gain in demand for new transportation equipment, especially for civilian aircraft and parts.

Aircraft orders often are made in multiple-plane purchases, and in any given month those commitments - or their lack - can affect manufacturing data disproportionately.

Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods rose 0.4% in September to $829.6bn, the department said, reaching the highest level since this data series was initiated in 1992.

Here, too, transportation equipment orders accounted for much of the gain.

September’s advance in unfilled orders followed a 0.3% improvement in August.

Inventories of durable goods also rose 0.4% in September to $340.2bn, also the highest level reached since the series began in 1992.  Inventories in August rose 0.8%.

US durable goods orders and inventories*

	Sept           (bn $)	Sept vs Aug          (%)	Aug vs July (r)              (%)
New orders	207.8	0.8	-5.5
Unfilled orders	829.6	0.4	0.3
Total inventories	340.2	0.4	0.8

r: revised  *seasonally adjusted

($1 = €0.79)

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By: Joe Kamalick
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