Durable Goods Orders

The durable goods orders report is issued monthly by the Department of Commerce and measures the dollar volume of new orders, shipments, and unfilled orders of durable goods. Durable goods orders give a reading on the country's future manufacturing activity. Durable goods orders include those manufactured items with a normal life expectancy of three years or longer (i.e. appliances, furniture, etc.). An significant increase of durable goods orders over several months tends to indicate an expanding economy. A strong upward trend in durable goods orders tends to signal inflation, higher interest rates, encourage a stronger dollar, suggest increasing corporate profits, and is generally positive for stocks. A weak or declining trend in durable goods orders tends to suggest the opposite.