Factory orders climb 1.8% in November

Factory orders in the U.S. rose in November, signaling a jump in investment that could help fuel economic growth in 2014.

The Commerce Department reported Monday that orders of goods such as machinery increased 1.8% in November from the month before. October was revised to show a 0.5% drop, an improvement from the initial report of a 0.9% decline.

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Factory orders climbed 2.5% in the 12-month period through November. In that month, orders of manufactured goods climbed to $497.9 billion, the highest level since 1992, the agency said.

That combined with other positive employment and housing data raised hopes the economy will gain momentum in the new year as Americans increasingly make big ticket purchases such as houses and automobiles.

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The November gains were driven by a large 21.8% gain in aircraft orders. Transportation equipment bumped up 0.4%. Core capital goods, an indicator of business investment, climbed 4.1%.

Durable goods enjoyed the biggest gain of 3.4% in November, compared with nondurable goods such as clothing, which rose 0.3%.

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