US core capital goods orders, shipments increase in October

WASHINGTON, Dec 23 (Reuters) – New orders for key U.S.-manufactured capital goods increased in October and shipments of these goods rose solidly, suggesting business spending on equipment remained strong at the start of the fourth quarter.

Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending, rose 0.5% following an upwardly revised 1.1% gain in September, the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau said on Tuesday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast these so-called core capital goods orders would advance 0.4% after a previously reported 0.9% jump in September. Shipments of core capital goods rose 0.7% after surging 1.2% in September. 

The report was delayed by the 43-day shutdown of the federal government. Though tariffs on imports have constrained manufacturing, which accounts for 10.1% of the economy, a boom in artificial intelligence investment is supporting some industries.

Business spending on equipment increased at a still-solid 5.4% annualized rate in the third quarter, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said in a separate report, slowing after a robust growth pace in the first half of the year. The economy grew at a 4.3% rate last quarter after expanding at a 3.8% pace in the April-June quarter.

Orders for durable goods, items ranging from toasters to aircraft meant to last three years or more, decreased 2.2% in October after rising 0.7% in September. 

Non-defense aircraft and parts orders plunged 32.4%. Boeing reported on its website that it had received only 15 aircraft orders in October compared to 96 in September.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)