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Durables orders up sharply
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October 28, 1998: 9:08 a.m. ET
Communications equipment helps lift September orders figures 0.9 percent
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - New orders for durable goods jumped $1.7 billion, or nearly a full percentage point, in September, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Wednesday, confounding economists' expectations.
Overall, orders for durable goods -- manufactured items with a life span of three years or longer -- increased 0.9 percent to $192.1 billion from the month before. Economists had expected a decrease of 0.7 percent, reflecting a perceived overall slowdown in the U.S. economy.
"Durable goods orders are notorious for big revisions in the numbers," said international economist Maria Ramirez of Maria Ramirez Ramirez Inc. "I really wouldn't extrapolate a lot from that number . . . what is important is farther down the road, what the sales figures are like."
Looking ahead, she cautioned that while orders were still strong, "there's a drag from the trade deficit being large, fiscal spending being lower," and she expected business spending to slow down over the next few months.
In the year to date, new orders are 4.1 percent above the year-ago period, led by a $1.7 billion surge in electronics, mostly communication equipment.
Excluding a slumping transportation sector, orders increased 2.6 percent. Orders for transportation equipment decreased $2.0 billion, or 4.4 percent, to $44.7 billion.
Shipments of durable goods increased $2.9 billion, or 1.5 percent, to $191.7 billion, again building on last month's 1 percent increase.
Unfilled orders firmed slightly, up $0.5 billion to $506.7 billion.
The bond market gave up most of its early gains on the news. The benchmark 30-year Treasury bond was trading up 1/32 to yield 4.07 percent after having touched a 5.06 percent yield earlier in the morning. 
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