2018.07.0310:22:00UTC+00U.S. Factory Orders Unexpectedly Rebound In May

New orders for U.S. manufactured goods unexpectedly rebounded in the month of May, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday.

The Commerce Department said factory orders climbed by 0.4 percent in May after falling by a revised 0.4 percent in April.

Economists had expected orders to come in unchanged compared to the 0.8 percent decrease originally reported for the previous month.

The unexpected rebound in factory orders came amid a sharp jump in orders for non-durable goods, which surged up by 1.1 percent in May after rising by 0.3 percent in April.

On the other hand, the report said durable goods orders fell by a revised 0.4 percent in May following a 1.0 percent slump in April. Last week, the Commerce Department said durable goods orders dropped by 0.6 percent.

Orders for transportation equipment showed another notable decline, tumbling by 1.1 percent in May after plunging by 6.1 percent in the previous month.

Excluding orders for transportation equipment, the Commerce Department said factory orders advanced by 0.7 percent in May compared to the 0.9 percent increase in April.

Shipments of manufactured goods climbed by 0.6 percent in May after inching up by 0.1 percent in April, while inventories of manufactured goods rose by 0.2 percent after increasing by 0.4 percent.

The report said the inventories-to-shipments ratio subsequently came in at 1.35 in May, unchanged from the previous month.