Monday, December 27, 2004
U.S. Big-Ticket Orders Rise, Powered By Higher Plane Orders
INDUSTRYWEEK: LEADERSHIP IN MANUFACTURING -- DAILY PAGE: "Orders for "big-ticket" durable U.S. goods surged by a steeper-than-expected margin in November, powered by soaring orders for commercial planes, the government said Thursday. Orders leapt 1.6%, surpassing widespread Wall Street expectations for a gain of 1.0%. The surge was driven by a 64.2% percent increase in orders for civilian aircraft. Stripping out all transportation industries, durable goods orders would have declined 0.8%. A breakdown showed: -- Computers and electronic products orders fell 4.2% as communication equipment orders plunged 35.0% and computer orders rose 4.1%. Capital goods orders rose 1.6%, including a 31.8% drop in defense capital goods orders and an 8.1% increase in civilian capital goods orders. "
