U.S. durable goods orders rise 2.5 percent in March

Orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods rose 2.5 percent in March, the third consecutive monthly increase, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.


Orders for manufactured durable goods in March increased 5.0 billion dollars from February to 208.4 billion U.S. dollars, following a revised 0.7 percent increase in February, the department said.


Transportation equipment, also up three consecutive months, had the largest increase, 3.1 billion dollars or 5.9 percent to 54.7 billion dollars in March.


Excluding the volatile transportation sector, new orders for U.S. manufactured goods rose 1.3 percent last month.


Manufacturing sector in the world's largest economy was hit hard by the worst recession since the Great Depression. For all of 2009, durable goods orders plunged by 20.2 percent, the largest drop on records that go back to 1992. It has been a bright spot that helped drive growth during the early stages of the U.S. economic recovery.


Inventories of manufactured durable goods in March, up fifteen straight months, increased 1.3 percent to 333.9 billion dollars. This is another sign that shows economic improvement.
(Source:http://news.xinhuanet.com)