US Factory Orders Increased 1.8 Percent in November

Orders for transportation equipment rose 8.3 percent

(Reuters)—New orders for U.S. factory goods rebounded in November, adding to signs of strong momentum in the economy in late 2013.

The Commerce Department said on Monday new orders for manufactured goods increased 1.8 percent. October's orders were revised to show a 0.5 percent drop instead of the previously reported 0.9 percent fall.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new orders received by factories rising 1.8 percent.

The report joined other data ranging from employment to consumer spending and home building in painting an upbeat picture of the economy.

Though the pace of growth is widely expected to slow in the fourth quarter from the July-September period's inventory-driven spurt, the economy has been gathering underlying strength, enough to set it on a faster growth path in 2014.