New orders for long-lasting goods in the US increased in February, driven by an uptick in aircraft spending, while underlying measures of business spending improved.
Orders for durable goods, which include washing machines, cars and aircraft, increased 1.4 per cent in February from the previous month’s downwardly revised 6.9 per cent decline, according to the Census Bureau. That beat expectations for a 1.1 per cent increase.
Excluding transport, new orders for durable goods increased 0.5 per cent from a 0.3 per cent decline in January
New orders for non-defence capital goods excluding aircraft, considered a proxy for business investment, increased 0.7 per cent in February, up from a downwardly revised 0.4 per cent decline the previous month.