WASHINGTON -- New orders for manufactured goods rose 2.1% in May, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
The increase of $9.9 billion took new orders to $485.0 billion, following a revised 1.3% increase the previous month, originally reported as a 1.0% gain.
The May increase was slightly higher than the median 2.0% gain projected by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. It was led by new durable goods orders for transportation equipment, which rose $7.3 billion or 10.9% to $74.5 billion.
Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.6% in May, after rising a revised 0.2% the previous month, originally reported as a 0.1% drop. Excluding defense, they rose 2.0% after increasing 0.8% in April, originally reported as a 0.5% gain.
Total shipments in May, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, increased $4.6 billion or 1.0% to $483.6 billion after falling an unrevised 0.7% in April. Shipments of manufactured durable goods, up three of the last four months, increased $2.8 billion or 1.3% to $229.8 billion.
Unfilled orders in May, up three of the last four months, rose $8.2 billion or 0.8% to $1.0 trillion, following an unrevised 0.3% April decrease.
Total inventories, up six consecutive months, increased $0.3 billion to $627.8 billion, the highest since the series was first published on a NAICS basis in 1992. The gain followed a 0.1% increase in April.
Inventories of manufactured durable goods, up four of the last five months, edged up $0.4 billion or 0.1% to $377.7 billion, also the highest level since the series was first published on a NAICS basis. The gain followed a 0.2% Increase in April.
