WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New orders for key U.S.-manufactured capital goods unexpectedly rose in June, suggesting business spending on equipment could continue to grow after rebounding in the second quarter.
Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, rose 0.2% last month, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. Data for May was revised lower to show these so-called core capital goods rising 0.5% instead of 0.7% as previously reported.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast core capital goods orders edging down 0.1%.
The data was included in the advance gross domestic product data for the second quarter published on Thursday, which showed business spending on equipment rebounding after contracting for two straight quarters.
The economy grew at a 3.4% annualized rate last quarter after expanding at a 2.0% pace in the January-March period.