Updated: 03-Jul-25 10:27 ET
| May Factory Orders |
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| Updated: 03-Jul-25 10:27 ET |
Highlights
- Factory orders surged 8.2% month-over-month in May (Briefing.com consensus 7.9%) following a downwardly revised 3.9% decline (from -3.7%) in April.
- Excluding transportation, factory orders increased a more modest 0.2%, following a 0.6% decline in April.
- Shipments of manufactured goods increased 0.1% on the heels of a 0.3% decline in April.
Key Factors
- Durable goods orders were up 16.4% after dropping 6.6% in April, led by a 48.3% increase in transportation equipment orders.
- New orders for nondurable goods rose 0.1% after declining 1.0% in April.
- New orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft-a proxy for business spending-jumped 1.7% after sliding 1.5% in April.
- The inventory-to-shipments ratio held steady at 1.58.
Big Picture
- The key takeaway from the report is that business spending picked up markedly in May, reflecting the improved activity that followed the pause on reciprocal tariffs announced in April and the subsequent de-escalation in the U.S.-China tariff measures.
| Category | MAY | APR | MAR | FEB | JAN |
| Factory Orders | 8.2% | -3.9% | 3.4% | 0.5% | 0.3% |
| Less Defense | 7.5% | -4.3% | 3.9% | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| Durable Goods | 16.4% | -6.6% | 7.6% | 1.0% | 0.2% |
| Nondurable Goods | 0.1% | -1.0% | -0.7% | 0.1% | 0.4% |
| Unfilled Factory Orders | 3.4% | 0.0% | 1.6% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Factory Shipments | 0.1% | -0.3% | -0.2% | 0.6% | 0.4% |
| Factory Inventories | 0.1% | -0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Inventory/Shipment Ratio | 1.58 | 1.58 | 1.57 | 1.57 | 1.57 |
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