U.S. Factory Orders Grow in November

New orders for U.S. factory goods rebounded in November, adding to signs of strong momentum in the economy in late 2013.

The Commerce Department said on Monday new orders for manufactured goods increased 1.8 percent. October's orders were revised to show a 0.5 percent drop instead of the previously reported 0.9 percent fall.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new orders received by factories rising 1.8 percent.

The report joined other data ranging from employment to consumer spending and home building in painting an upbeat picture of the economy.

Though the pace of growth is widely expected to slow in the fourth quarter from the July-September period's inventory-driven spurt, the economy has been gathering underlying strength, enough to set it on a faster growth path in 2014.

Much of the economy's better fortunes reflect an acceleration in domestic demand and diminishing uncertainty over fiscal policy after the U.S. Congress agreed to a two-year budget deal.

A 16-day shutdown of the government in October is expected to have shaved off as much as 0.6 percentage point from fourth-quarter gross domestic product growth.

Factory orders rose in most categories, with notable gains in transportation. New orders for transportation equipment increased 8.3 percent after falling 3.5 percent in October.

Orders excluding the volatile transportation category rose 0.6 percent after edging up 0.1 percent in October.

There were gains in orders for machinery, computer and electronic products and fabricated metal products, among others. Orders for electrical equipment fell as did orders for primary metals.

The department also said orders for durable goods, manufactured products expected to last three years or more, rose 3.4 percent instead of the 3.5 percent increase reported last month. Durable goods orders excluding transportation rose 1.2 percent as previously reported.

Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft - seen as a measure of business confidence and spending plans - increased 4.1 percent instead of the previously reported 4.5 percent advance.