US factory orders up 1.9 per cent in July, best in 9 months
WASHINGTON — Orders to U.S. factories increased in July by the largest amount in nine months, propelled by a big jump in demand for commercial aircraft. The key category that tracks business investment plans posted the best increase since January.
Factory orders rose 1.9 per cent in July, the Commerce Department reported Friday. It was the biggest one-month gain since last October and was led by a surge in orders in the volatile category of commercial aircraft. Orders in the category that serves as a proxy for business investment increased 1.5 per cent, the best showing since January.
Economists are hoping that after a period of weakness, business investment will begin to rebound in the second half of this year. Supporting that view, demand for oil field equipment rose for a third month.
The oil field and mining machinery category jumped by 45.6 per cent in July but even after three months of strong gains, total orders in this category are 59.9 per cent lower in the first seven months of this year compared to last year. The energy sector had cut back sharply on drilling and exploration in response to the huge drop in oil prices and this sector is only now starting to stabilize.