Durable Goods Orders in August Exceed Expectations with 0.2% Increase: Defense Sector Boosts Growth

The total amount of orders amounted to 284.7 billion dollars, an increase of 0.2% compared to the month of July. Analysts were expecting a decline of 0.2%.

Orders for durable goods in August in the United States started to rise again in August, after a marked decline the previous month, benefiting in particular from orders in the defense sector, according to data published Wednesday by the Department of Defense. Trade.

The total amount of orders amounted to 284.7 billion dollars, an increase of 0.2% compared to the month of July, for which the data was also revised slightly downward (-5.6% instead of -5.2% initially announced).

Orders for the month of August stood out from what had been anticipated by analysts, who were instead counting on a decline of 0.2%, according to the consensus published by briefing.com.

Excluding transport, whose activity is still strongly linked to orders for air transport devices and whose deliveries vary from one month to the next, orders increased a little more, around 0.4%. .

If we exclude this time military orders, which also vary greatly from one month to the next, orders are however down 0.7%.

In detail, the transport sector is in slight decline, of 0.2%, a drop which can be explained above all by the sharp decline in orders for civil aviation, down 14.8%, and for military aircraft. (-8.3%).

Conversely, other motorized vehicles, in particular cars, two-wheelers and heavy goods vehicles, are up slightly compared to July (+0.3%).

On the delivery side, the trend is also slightly positive, with an increase of 0.5%, mainly benefiting from the recovery of transport equipment, after two consecutive months of decline.

Business inventories are also up very slightly, by 0.2%, while unfilled orders are also increasing, for the eighth month in a row.

Goods considered durable are those used for three years or more, such as cars and household appliances or electronics.

The American central bank, the Fed, announced on September 20 that it would maintain rates at their current level, the highest in 22 years.

But it forecasts an additional rise in rates by the end of 2023, and sees them remaining higher in 2024 than what it previously anticipated.

Because the slowdown in inflation could be slower than hoped. After slowing down for a year, the rise in prices rebounded this summer in the United States, due in particular to the global rise in oil prices.

It stood at 3.7% over one year in August, according to the CPI index. The PCE index, favored by the Fed, was 3.3% in July, August data will be released on Friday.

2023-09-27 13:24:57


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