New York: Orders for durable goods probably rose in January by the most in four months and home sales showed more signs of stabilising, indicating manufacturing is driving the US recovery, economists said before reports this week.
Bookings for goods meant to last several years rose 1.5 per cent last month after a 1 per cent gain, according to the median estimate of 48 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Combined sales of new and existing homes rose 1.1 per cent to a 5.86 million annual pace, other reports may show.
"Manufacturing is coming back pretty solidly and there is some strength in capital spending," said Mark Vitner, a senior economist at Wells Fargo Securities in Charlotte, North Carolina. "Housing is definitely a laggard. Until we get job growth and lending eases up, we're not going to get a whole lot of lift."
The Commerce Department's durable goods report is due in February 25 in Washington. Estimates in the Bloomberg survey ranged from a decline of 0.5 per cent to a gain of 5 per cent.
Manufacturing, which accounts for 12 per cent of the economy, expanded in January at the fastest pace since August 2004, according to the Institute for Supply Management's factory index released on February 1.
Initial estimate
Spending on equipment and software rose at a 13.3 per cent annual pace in the fourth quarter, the fastest since 2006, the Commerce Department said in its initial estimate of gross domestic product on January 29.
The economy probably grew at a 5.7 per cent annual rate from October through December, according to the median survey of economists before the Commerce Department's first revision to the figures on February 26.
