Updated: 26-Jun-25 09:55 ET
Highlights
- Durable goods orders surged 16.4% month-over-month in May (Briefing.com consensus 6.6%) on a 230.8% increase in orders for nondefense aircraft and parts.
- Excluding transportation, durable goods orders were up 0.5% month-over-month (Briefing.com consensus 0.1%).
- New orders for primary metals increased 0.1% following a 0.2% increase in April.
- New orders for fabricated metal products increased 0.7% following a 0.5% increase in April.
- New orders for machinery jumped 0.3% after increasing 0.4% in April.
- New orders for computers and electronic products rose 1.5% following a 0.5% increase in April.
- New orders for transportation equipment surged 48.3% following a 17.6% decline in April.
- The key takeaway, however, is that new orders for nondefense capital goods, excluding aircraft -- a proxy for business spending -- increased 1.7% on the heels of a 1.4% decline in April, reflecting a strong rebound after the reciprocal tariff pause announcement.
| Category | MAY | APR | MAR | FEB | JAN |
| Total Durable Orders | 16.4% | -6.6% | 7.6% | 1.0% | 0.2% |
| Less Defense | 15.5% | -7.7% | 9.0% | 0.6% | 1.0% |
| Less Transport | 0.5% | 0.0% | -0.2% | 0.4% | 0.3% |
| Transportation | 48.3% | -17.6% | 23.5% | 2.1% | 0.1% |
| Capital Goods | 48.0% | -15.0% | 21.7% | -2.3% | 1.6% |
| Nondefense | 49.4% | -19.1% | 27.2% | -2.5% | 4.2% |
| Nondefense/nonaircarft (core cap gds) | 1.7% | -1.4% | 0.3% | -0.5% | 1.8% |
| Defense Cap Goods | 38.7% | 26.8% | -15.0% | -0.7% | -12.9% |
