Durable goods orders jump 3.5% in November

In the latest evidence of a rebound in manufacturing, orders for durable goods jumped 3.5% in November, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Orders for manufactured durable goods -- products that are expected to last three years or more -- increased to $241.6 billion. Orders have been up in three of the last four months. November’s data follow a 0.7% decline in October.

November’s surge was in large part due to a 21.8% increase in orders for commercial aircraft, a segment that can be volatile.

Orders for transportation equipment, which includes commercial aircraft, rose 8.4% overall to $81.2 billion. That segment has also been up three of the last four months.

Orders for capital goods -- a key metric that tracks business investment -- rose 9.4% to $88 billion, the Commerce Department reported.

Tuesday’s report provides more evidence of a rebound in manufacturing. The Institute for Supply Management has reported that manufacturing activity rose in November at the fastest pace in more than two years.

Consumers have been spending on new cars, boosting automotive manufacturing. The government also said the economy grew faster in the third quarter than previously estimated, expanding at a 4.1% annual rate in the July-September time period.

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