Durable Goods Orders Jump 1.4% in May

Orders for big-ticket manufactured goods jumped 1.4% in May to a seasonally adjusted $197.6 billion, led by gains in aircraft and autos, the Commerce Department said, in another sign that the nation’s battered manufacturing sector is headed for a revival. The increase in orders for durable goods--items expected to last at least three years--followed a steep 2.3% decline in April. Orders for transportation equipment were up a strong 9.5% in May. Excluding the strength in transportation, overall orders for durable goods would have fallen 0.7%. Shipments of big-ticket durable goods, a good sign of current demand, increased 1% in May.

Separately, the Commerce Department said steel imports rose 30% in May to 3 million metric tons, from a final figure of 2.3 million in April, with most of the increase in imports coming from Brazil, Mexico and Russia. Still, total shipments were 18% below November’s level.

The number of U.S. workers filing for state unemployment benefits rose by 3,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 302,000, the Labor Department said in another report. The less-volatile four-week average was little changed, however, suggesting workers are having little trouble finding jobs.