Factory Orders Increase 0.5% in September
actory orders in the United States rose 0.5% in September, the fourth increase in the past five months, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.
Orders increased to $331.1 billion, following a revised 0.3% decrease in August. Excluding transportation equipment, orders rose 0.6% in September.
Improving factory orders translate to increased demand for trucking services because factories depend on trucks to deliver raw materials and carry finished products to stores and warehouses.
Capital goods orders excluding defense and aircraft, a proxy for future corporate investment in equipment and software, rose 4.7%, the biggest increase since March.
Orders for transportation equipment rose 0.1%. Motor vehicles orders increased 6% and industrial machinery orders surged 10.3%.
The manufacturing inventory-to-sales ratio fell to a record-low 1.30 months in September. Factory inventories dropped 0.4% after declining 0.3% in August.
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