US durable goods orders boosted by aircraft in July

Orders for civilian and military aircraft and parts lifted US durable goods orders last month.

According to the Department of Commerce, orders for goods made to last more than three years jumped at a month-on-month pace of 2.1% in July to reach $250.38bn.

The pace of orders easily outpaced economists' forecasts, which had been calling for an increase of 1.3%.

But excluding the often erratic category of transportation goods, orders fell by 0.4% on the month (consensus: 0.1%).

Civilian aircraft orders were especially strong, extending their recent rebound with an increase of 47.8% to $10.6bn, while those for defence aircraft and parts were up by just over a third to $3.53bn.

Orders for capital goods excluding both defence and aircraft, which are considered to a key lead indicator for business investment, also beat forecasts, rising by 0.4% versus July (consensus: 0.1%).

In comparison to a year ago, total durable goods orders were just 0.3% higher.