durable goods

Remove the volatile defense and aircraft categories, and durable goods orders have been rising for 10 of the last 12 months.

Fresh data on orders for new semi-trucks, trains and planes in July showed a 2.3% increase from the previous month. That follows two previous monthly decreases.

Many manufacturers are also finding themselves with the need to restock, which also floats demand.

There is good news from the manufacturing sector, with orders for durable goods like cars, planes, and machinery up 7.9%.

Orders were down 1.4% in February, extending a pattern that predates the war in the Middle East.

New durable goods orders shot up more than 5% in November, according to delayed federal data.

U.S.-based companies like Whirlpool haven’t seen major sales gains, despite international competitors being hit by President Trump’s tariffs.

New orders for durable goods from U.S. manufacturers rose 2.9% in August, compared to July. But at least some of that rise is not because more stuff is being ordered, just that it is getting more expensive.

Sometimes they’re investing to meet current demand, sometimes they’re planning for the future.

But there’s plenty of room for distortion with import order data right now.