| Consensus | Consensus Range | Actual | Previous | Revised | |
| Month over Month | 0.4% | -0.2% to 0.5% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.0% |
Highlights
Factory orders are flat in February from January compared with the Econoday consensus calling for a gain of 0.4 percent but as usual these numbers are skewed down by volatile aircraft orders. Orders for January were revised down to show no change from the 0.1 percent uptick initially reported. December is also down by 0.4 percent.
These numbers suggest a decidedly sluggish overall performance but excluding transportation, factory orders are up 1.2 percent in February, up 0.5 percent in January and 0.6 percent in December. Nondefense aircraft and parts drop by 28.6 percent in February after declining 1.7 percent in January and 22.7 percent in December from the prior month.
Total durable goods orders are down 1.3 percent in February from January after declining 0.4 percent in January and 0.9 percent in December. On the nondurables side, orders are up an offsetting 1.5 percent in February from January after rising 0.5 percent in January and 0.1 percent in December. The Commerce Department did not provide detail on nondurables.
Market Consensus Before Announcement
A moderate 0.4 percent increase on month is the call for February after a 0.1 percent uptick in January.
* Originally scheduled for 4/2/2026
Definition
Factory orders represent the dollar level of new orders for both durable and nondurable goods. This report gives more complete information than the advance durable goods report which is released one or two weeks earlier in the month.
Description
Investors want to keep their fingers on the pulse of the economy because it usually dictates how various types of investments will perform. The stock market likes to see healthy economic growth because that translates to higher corporate profits. The bond market prefers more moderate growth which is less likely to cause inflationary pressures. By tracking economic data like factory orders, investors will know what the economic backdrop is for these markets and their portfolios. The orders data show how busy factories will be in coming months as manufacturers work to fill those orders. This report provides insight to the demand for not only hard goods such as refrigerators and cars, but nondurables such as cigarettes and apparel. In addition to new orders, analysts monitor unfilled orders, an indicator of the backlog in production. Shipments reveal current sales. Inventories give a handle on the strength of current and future production. All in all, this report tells investors what to expect from the manufacturing sector, a major component of the economy and therefore a major influence on their investments.
