Factory Orders Rise 1.5%; Ex-Transportation Up 1.4%

New factory orders for manufactured goods surged 1.5% in November, the Commerce Department said yesterday. The factory order increase, a $6.181 billion rise to $430.3 billion, outpaced the 0.5% increase projected by IFR Markets and came after a revised 0.7% increase to $424.1 billion in October, originally reported as a 0.5% increase to $423.5 billion. Excluding transportation, the level of all new manufacturing orders rose 1.4% to about $367.0 billion in November, following a 0.7% rise in October to $361.7 billion. The increase compared to a 0.6% increase projected by IFR Markets. Excluding defense, new orders rose 2.1% to $422.8 billion, following a 0.7% increase to $413.9 billion in October. New orders for durable goods slid 0.1% to $214.0 billion in November, while orders for non-durable goods rose 3.0% to $216.3 billion in the month. Inventories increased 0.8% to $524.4 billion, while the inventory to shipment ratio fell to 1.22 in November from 1.23 in October.