Orders for U.S. durable goods excluding transportation equipment rose in September by the most in six months, showing manufacturing is supporting the expansion.
Demand for goods meant to last at least three years, outside of airplanes and automobiles, climbed 1.7 percent, exceeding the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News that called for a 0.4 percent increase, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Total bookings fell 0.8 percent, depressed by a 26 percent plunge in planes.
Expanding economies overseas and a 14 percent drop in the value of the dollar since June 2010 are propelling American exports to record levels, helping manufacturers like Caterpillar Inc. A government incentive may also be contributing to gains in business spending on equipment, like computers and machinery, giving the world’s largest economy an added boost.
“Manufacturing is in pretty decent shape, and this ends the quarter on a high note,” said Brian Jones, a senior U.S. economist at Societe Generale in New York, who correctly forecast demand for non-transportation equipment. “We’ve got decent momentum going into the fourth quarter.”
Stocks gained after the report and as Germany’s lower house of parliament approved plans to boost the European bailout fund. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed 0.9 percent to 1,240.02 at 9:38 a.m. in New York. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose to 2.15 percent from 2.11 percent late yesterday.
