Durable-goods orders rise surprising 1.3% in July

Horrible recession! Depression! Crisis! Economy in tatters!.... or not,

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Signaling that some businesses have still been spending despite tight credit and a slow economy, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new orders for U.S.-made durable goods surged in July, rising 1.3%.
Strong transportation equipment demand boosted the result, Commerce reported. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been looking for a gain of 0.2%.

Excluding transportation goods, July's new orders rose 0.7%.
Durable goods are big-ticket items designed to last three years or more. As such, new orders are very sensitive to economic expectations and serve as useful leading indicators of growth.

Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, wrote that companies benefiting from the export boom are likely behind the increase in capital spending.