--US November factory orders +1.7%; ex-transportation +0.7%
--Excluding defense, US November factory orders +1.3%
--US November durable goods orders revised to +2.5% from +2.3%
--US November non-durable goods orders +0.7% vs October's -0.5%
--US November factory inventories +0.5%; shipments -0.4%
--US November unfilled orders +0.6%
--US November inventory/shipments ratio 1.32 vs October's 1.31
--US October factory orders revised to -4.0% from -3.3%
By Andrew Williams, BridgeNews
Washington--Jan. 4--A jump in transportation equipment orders helped boost U.S. factory orders 1.7% in November, topping economists' expectations of a 1.2% rise. Manufacturers' orders rebounded from October, when they dropped a revised 4.0%. However, excluding transportation, factory orders rose 0.7% in November, while factory inventories grew 0.5%. * * * November non-durable goods orders, being reported for the first time Thursday, were up 0.7% after a revised 0.5% decline the month before, the Commerce Department said. November's orders for durable goods were revised to up 2.5%, from up 2.3% as reported in the Dec. 22 preliminary report on durable goods (see story .4726). WHAT WAS EXPECTED: In a BridgeNews survey, private analysts forecast November factory orders would be reported up 0.6% to up 1.8%. FACTORY INVENTORIES, SHIPMENTS: --The November rise of 0.5% in manufacturers' inventories compares with a revised 0.7% climb in October. --Factory shipments posted their third consecutive decrease in November, slipping 0.4%. They fell a revised 1.2% in October. --The inventory-to-shipments ratio rose to 1.32 in November from October's revised 1.31. --Unfilled orders were up 0.6% in November, reversing a revised 0.7% slide the prior month. CAPITAL GOODS SHIPMENTS: Shipments of non-defense capital goods, excluding aircraft fell a revised 1.6% in November after being reported down 1.5% in the durable goods report. These shipments are an important indicator of trends in capital spending and the contribution of producers' durable equipment purchases to GDP growth. ORDERS DETAILS: In other revisions to the November durable goods orders report, Commerce said transportation equipment orders rose 8.8%, led by aircraft and parts. That was a rebound from October, when transportation equipment orders plummeted 17.3%. Orders for electronic and other electric equipment was revised to up 7.0%; they were previously reported up 4.5%. Orders for industrial machinery were revised to up 0.5%--the first increase since July; they were previously pegged as up 1.1%. End Copyright 2001 Bridge Information Systems Inc. All rights reserved.