New orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods rose by more than expected in the month of February, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday, although the increase was largely due to a rebound by orders in the volatile transportation sector.

The report said durable goods orders surged up by 5.7 percent in February following a revised 3.8 percent decrease in January. Economists had expected durable goods orders to rise by 3.5 percent compared to the 4.9 percent decrease that had been reported for the previous month.

Excluding orders for transportation equipment, however, durable goods orders fell by 0.5 percent in February compared to a 2.9 percent increase in January. Ex-transportation orders had been expected to increase by 0.7 percent.