U.S. Durable Goods Orders Jump 1.8% to $345.4 Billion in September
Key Facts
New orders for manufactured durable goods in the United States rose 1.8% in September, increasing $6.3 billion to $345.4 billion, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report released on October 27. The increase followed a 0.1% rise in August. The reading exceeded EL7’s forecast of 1.5%, according to its release data. The Census Bureau said orders increased in six of the seven months through September. Their value also rose 8.0% year to date compared with the same period in 2025. The figures provide an indication of demand for manufactured goods, alongside the shipments, unfilled orders and inventories data included in the report.
September’s increase was concentrated in transportation equipment, where orders rose 4.6%, or $5.2 billion, to $119.8 billion. The Census Bureau said orders excluding transportation equipment increased 0.5%, while orders excluding defense rose 2.2%. A Bloomberg report published by The Edge Malaysia described the reading as the strongest increase in five months. It linked the rise to more bookings for aircraft and business equipment, noting that orders for commercial aircraft rose 28.4%. The comparison between total orders and the measure excluding transportation reflects differences in the pace of gains across sectors during the month.
In a measure tied to business investment, new orders for nondefense capital goods rose 6.2%, or $6.3 billion, to $107.8 billion. Shipments of these goods increased 1.7%, or $1.7 billion, to $97.1 billion, according to the Census Bureau. The report’s detailed table confirms a 0.5% increase in orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft, without the main text providing a previous monthly comparison for this measure. Shipments are important for tracking actual activity, as the Bloomberg report noted that shipments of nondefense capital goods, including aircraft, feed into estimates of equipment investment in gross domestic product. The measure uses shipment data because orders can be canceled. Before the report was released, the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank’s GDPNow model forecast that business spending on equipment would add one percentage point to third-quarter growth.
At the shipments level, shipments of manufactured durable goods rose 0.9%, or $3.0 billion, to $336.8 billion in September, after falling 0.2% in August. Transportation equipment led the increase in shipments, according to the Census Bureau report. Unfilled orders also rose 0.8%, or $13.6 billion, to $1,623.6 billion, following a 0.6% increase in August. Inventories climbed 0.3%, or $1.9 billion, to $610.0 billion, after rising 0.5% in August. The bureau said inventories increased for the 12th consecutive month. Together, these indicators show increases in orders, shipments, unfilled orders and inventories in September.
The Census Bureau report presents monthly changes in the value of manufacturers’ shipments, new orders, net unfilled orders and inventories. The data are seasonally adjusted but not adjusted for price changes. Separately from the manufacturing data, Whirlpool reported sales of $3.677 billion in the third quarter, down 8.8% year over year. The company posted a net loss available to common shareholders of $249 million, compared with profit of $73 million in the year-earlier period. Chief Executive Mark Bitzer said, "The pace of the recovery is slower than expected." The company said its forecast for net debt at the end of 2026 improved to less than $4.5 billion, from less than $5 billion.
Whirlpool added that it would apply a 7% price increase to major home appliances in North America during the fourth quarter. Sales in that segment had fallen 8.3% year over year in the third quarter, the company said. These results concern the company’s performance and appliance market, while the Census Bureau data cover U.S. manufacturing sectors more broadly. The orders report is being released during the Federal Open Market Committee meeting running from October 27 to 28. The Federal Reserve’s press conference is scheduled for October 28, according to the central bank’s calendar.
The Census Bureau is scheduled to publish revised, more detailed estimates, along with data on nondurable goods, on November 3 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. The advance report on durable goods for October is due on November 25 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. The next release will allow October data to be compared with September’s reading, which showed increases in new orders, shipments, unfilled orders and inventories. The monthly report continues to present these indicators alongside the value of manufacturers’ orders and shipments. The upcoming release dates remain the next scheduled milestones for the Census Bureau’s data on this sector.