The U.S. Commerce Department reported on Monday that the durable goods orders surged 1.8 percent m-o-m in August, following a revised 0.5 percent m-o-m gain in July (originally a 0.1 percent m-o-m decrease). 

Economists had forecast a 0.7 percent m-o-m advance.

Meanwhile, orders for durable goods excluding transportation rose 0.2 percent m-o-m in August, following a revised 0.8 percent m-o-m increase in July (originally a 0.7 percent m-o-m gain), being below economists’ forecast for a 0.5 percent m-o-m climb.

Elsewhere, orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, went up 0.5 m-o-m in August after a revised 0.3 percent increase m-o-m in July (originally a 0.1 percent m-o-m uptick). Economists had called for a 0.4 percent m-o-m rise in core capital goods orders in August.

Shipments of these core capital goods rose 0.7 percent m-o-m in August after a revised 0.9 percent m-o-m growth in the prior month.