US Factory Orders Rise More Than Expected
2026-11-03 15:06
By
Joana Ferreira
1 min. read
New orders for US manufactured goods increased 1.8% month over month in September 2026, following a revised 0.3% gain in August and comfortably exceeding market expectations of a 1.2% rise.
This marked the strongest increase in factory orders since April, driven primarily by a 4.6% jump in transportation equipment orders, including a sharp 28.3% surge in civilian aircraft and parts.
Orders for defense aircraft and parts also rose 5.8%, while motor vehicle orders edged up just 0.1% and orders for ships and boats dropped sharply by 9.9%.
Elsewhere, demand increased for machinery (1.5%), computers and electronic products (0.8%), fabricated metal products (0.5%), and primary metals (0.4%).
By contrast, orders for electrical equipment, appliances and components declined 0.3%.
Excluding transportation, factory orders rose 1.3%, while orders excluding defense increased 2.0%, pointing to broader strength in manufacturing demand.