Durable (Not So) Goods
Courtesy of Jake at Econompic Data
I apologize in advance for the title… it’s a Friday and I’m in a weird mood. WSJ details:
Demand for U.S. manufactured durable goods tumbled more than expected in August, held back by steep drops in airplanes and cars.
Durable-goods orders declined by 1.3% to a seasonally adjusted $191.17 billion, the Commerce Department said Friday. This is the biggest drop since August 2009.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected a 1.0% decline. Friday’s report was mixed, as there were gains in machinery, computers and fabricated metal products. Also, a barometer of capital spending by businesses rose; orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft increased by 4.1%.
Still, overall transportation equipment orders dropped 10.3% in August — restrained by a 40.3% decline in orders for nondefense aircraft and parts. Motor vehicles and parts were also down, falling 4.4%.
August was not as bad as the headline figure would indicate… without non-defense aircraft, durable goods were up 0.6% and without all transportation, durable goods were up 2%.
HOWEVER, the overall trend is ugly with the three month change in durable goods new orders down -0.8% and only two categories showing growth (electronics [thanks Apple!] and fabricated metals).
Source: Census
