Reflecting a substantial rebound by orders for transportation equipment, the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods surged by more than expected in the month of January.
The Commerce Department said durable goods orders shot up by 3.1 percent in January after tumbling by a revised 1.8 percent in December.
The sharp increase by durable goods orders came as orders for transportation equipment spiked by 9.8 percent in January after plunging by 5.5 percent in December.
Orders for non-defense aircraft and parts led the way higher, skyrocketing by 93.9 percent in January after plummeting by 28.9 percent in December.
Excluding the surge in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders were unchanged in January after inching up by 0.1 percent in December. Ex-transportation orders were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.
Ex-transportation orders came in unchanged as notable increases in orders for computers and electronic products and primary metals were offset by a slump in orders for fabricated metal products.
The report said orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a key indicator of business spending, climbed by 0.8 percent in January after inching up by 0.2 percent in December.
Meanwhile, shipments in the same category, which is the source data for equipment investment in GDP, fell by 0.3 percent in January after rising by 0.3 percent in December.