Research >> Economics
New orders for manufactured goods increased 1.2%
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New orders for manufactured goods in May, up three of the last four months, increased $4.1 billion or 1.2 percent to $347.9 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 0.5 percent April increase. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.8 percent.
Shipments, down ten consecutive months, decreased $3.1 billion or 0.9 percent to $353.3 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since the series was first published on a NAICS basis in 1992 and followed a 0.5 percent April decrease.
Unfilled orders, down eight consecutive months, decreased $1.8 billion or 0.2 percent to $747.3 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since November 2001-July 2002. This followed a 1.1 percent April decrease. The unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 6.15, up from 6.04 in April.
Inventories, down nine consecutive months, decreased $3.2 billion or 0.6 percent to $513.3 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since March 2003-January 2004 and followed a 1.2 percent April decrease. The inventories-to-shipments ratio was 1.45, unchanged from April.
Posted: July 2, 2009 Thursday 10:00 AM