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FOR RELEASE AT 10:00 AM EDT, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2018 

MONTHLY FULL REPORT ON MANUFACTURERS’ SHIPMENTS, INVENTORIES 

AND ORDERS AUGUST 2018 

Release Number: CB 18-153 M3-2 (18)-08 

October 4, 2018 — The U.S. Census Bureau announces the August full report on manufacturers’ 

shipments, inventories and orders: 

MANUFACTURED GOODS – NEW ORDERS

AUGUST 2018 $510.5 billion            +2.3%°

JULY 2018  

(revised) $498.9 billion             ‐0.5%°

Next release: November 2, 2018

Data adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes. 

Statistical significance is not measurable for this survey. The Manufacturers' 

Shipments, Inventories, and Orders estimates are not based on a probability sample, 

so the sampling error of these estimates cannot be measured nor can the confidence 

intervals be computed. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories and Orders, 

October 4, 2018. 

Summary 

New orders for manufactured goods in August, up three of the last four months, increased $11.5 billion or 

2.3 percent to $510.5 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 0.5 percent July 

decrease. Shipments, up fifteen of the last sixteen months, increased $2.3 billion or 0.5 percent to $504.0 

billion. This followed a virtually unchanged July increase. Unfilled orders, up nine of the last ten months, 

increased $10.4 billion or 0.9 percent to $1,176.5 billion. This followed a 0.1 percent July increase. The 

unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 6.68, down from 6.72 in July. Inventories, down following twentyone consecutive monthly increases, decreased $0.5 billion or 0.1 percent to $675.6 billion. This followed a 

0.9 percent July increase. The inventories-to-shipments ratio was 1.34, down from 1.35 in July. 

New Orders 

New orders for manufactured durable goods in August, up two of the last three months, increased $11.0 

billion or 4.4 percent to $259.6 billion, down from the previously published 4.5 percent increase. This 

followed a 1.2 percent July decrease. Transportation equipment, also up two of the last three months, drove 

the increase, $11.1 billion or 13.1 percent to $95.4 billion. New orders for manufactured nondurable goods 

increased $0.6 billion or 0.2 percent to $250.9 billion.

Sep-17 Oct-17 Nov-17 Dec-17 Jan-18 Feb-18 Mar-18 Apr-18 May-18 Jun-18 Jul-18 Aug-18

% Change 2.9% -1.5% 2.0% 1.8% -1.6% 2.0% 1.7% -0.4% 0.4% 0.6% -0.5% 2.3%

-4.0%

-3.0%

-2.0%

-1.0%

0.0%

1.0%

2.0%

3.0%

4.0%

MANUFACTURERS' NEW ORDERS 2017-2018

Seasonally Adjusted, Month-To-Month Percentage Change

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders,

October 4, 2018
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Shipments 

Shipments of manufactured durable goods in August, up three of the last four months, increased $1.8 billion 

or 0.7 percent to $253.1 billion, down from the previously published 0.8 percent increase. This followed a 

0.1 percent July decrease. Transportation equipment, up two of the last three months, led the increase, $1.7 

billion or 2.0 percent to $86.2 billion. Shipments of manufactured nondurable goods, up fourteen of the last 

fifteen months, increased $0.6 billion or 0.2 percent to $250.9 billion. This followed a 0.1 percent July 

increase. Chemical products, up three of the last four months, led the increase, $0.3 billion or 0.4 percent to 

$65.4 billion. 

Unfilled Orders 

Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in August, up nine of the last ten months, increased $10.4 

billion or 0.9 percent to $1,176.5 billion, unchanged from the previously published increase. This followed 

a 0.1 percent July increase. Transportation equipment, up six of the last seven months, led the increase, $9.2 

billion or 1.2 percent to $811.0 billion. 

Inventories

Inventories of manufactured durable goods in August, down following nineteen consecutive monthly 

increases, decreased $1.4 billion or 0.3 percent to $407.2 billion, up from the previously published 0.4 

decrease. This followed a 1.3 percent July increase. Transportation equipment, down two of the last three 

months, drove the decrease, $1.8 billion or 1.4 percent to $129.4 billion. Inventories of manufactured 

nondurable goods, up fourteen consecutive months, increased $0.8 billion or 0.3 percent to $268.4 billion. 

This followed a 0.3 percent July increase. Petroleum and coal products, up four of the last five months, led 

the increase, $0.5 billion or 1.1 percent to $42.7 billion. By stage of fabrication, August materials and 

supplies increased 0.3 percent in durable goods and increased 0.4 percent in nondurable goods. Work in 

process decreased 1.1 percent in durable goods and increased 0.3 percent in nondurable goods. Finished 

goods were virtually unchanged in durable goods and increased 0.2 percent in nondurable goods. 

The Advance Report on durable goods for September is scheduled for release on October 25, 2018 at 8:30 

a.m. EDT and the Full Report on November 2, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. View the full schedule in the 

Economic Briefing Room: <www.census.gov/economic-indicators/>. The full text and tables of this release 

can be found at <www.census.gov/m3>.

EXPLANATORY NOTES 

Figures in text are adjusted for seasonality, but not for inflation. Figures on new and unfilled orders exclude 

data for semiconductor manufacturing. 

“Virtually unchanged” indicates that the change is less than 0.05 percent for a percent increase or decrease. 
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Description of the survey 

This report is compiled from results of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, 

and Orders (M3) survey, which is a voluntary survey authorized by Title 13 of the United States Code. This 

survey provides statistics on a calendar-month basis for manufacturers' value of shipments, new orders (net 

of cancellations), end-of-month order backlog (unfilled orders), end-of-month total inventory (at current 

cost or market value), and inventories by stage of fabrication (materials and supplies, work-in-process, and 

finished goods). Data published from the M3 survey are based on a panel of approximately 5,000 reporting 

units that represent approximately 3,100 companies and provide an indication of month-to-month change for 

the Manufacturing Sector. These reporting units June be divisions of diversified large companies, large 

homogenous companies, or single-unit manufacturers in 92 industry categories, which are combined into 65 

publication levels due to the small monthly panel size. The survey methodology assumes that the month-tomonth changes of the total operations of the reporting units in the M3 panel effectively represent the monthto-month movements of all establishments that make up the category. The companies for which shipments 

data are currently reported or imputed in the M3 survey represent approximately 64 percent of the total 

value of shipments for manufacturing establishments in the 2012 Economic Census, and these companies 

include almost two-thirds of the manufacturing companies with $500 million or more in shipments in the 

2012 Economic Census. The companies for which shipments data are currently reported in the M3 survey 

represent approximately 57 percent of the total value of shipments for manufacturing establishments in the 

2012 Economic Census. Statistics based on the M3 panel differ from the results that would be obtained 

from a complete enumeration of all manufacturing companies. The M3 panel is not based on a probability 

sample; therefore, the sampling errors that are normally provided with sample surveys cannot be measured. 

Nonsampling errors are attributable to many sources. The use of company or divisional reports to estimate 

the monthly change for establishments is one source of nonsampling error. The use of primarily large 

companies to represent the month-to-month movement of all companies is another potential source. Any 

corrections will be published in the full report. Corrections received after the full report will be released in 

the next month’s advance report. Any revisions made later than two months will be reflected in the annual 

benchmark publication. Additional survey documentation can be found on our web site: 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 

RESOURCES 

API 

The Census Bureau’s application programming interface (API) lets developers create custom apps to reach 

new users and makes key demographic, socio-economic and housing statistics more accessible than ever 

before. 

<www.census.gov/developers/>. 
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NEW TIME SERIES 

Beginning with the release of June 2018 data on July 26, 2018, historical estimates of the Monthly Advance 

Report on Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories and Orders are available on a seasonally adjusted basis as 

well as a not seasonally adjusted basis at: <https://www.census.gov/econ/currentdata/>. 

FRED Mobile App 

Receive the latest updates on the nation’s key economic indicators by downloading 

the FRED App <https://fred.stlouisfed.org/fred-mobile/> for both Apple and 

Android devices. FRED, the signature database of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. 

Louis, now incorporates the Census Bureau’s 13 economic indicators. 

###
Table 1. Value of Manufacturers' Shipments for Industry Groups1

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted 

Monthly Percent Change Monthly

Industry % Change

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2018p 2017 2017

 All manufacturing industries.................. 504,009 501,661 501,641 0.5 0.0 1.0 528,427 482,868 525,660 489,567 3,968,840 3,689,044 7.6

 Excluding transportation................... 417,797 417,161 415,989 0.2 0.3 0.4 435,806 412,040 433,348 404,975 3,300,809 3,058,779 7.9

 Excluding defense.............................. 490,287 488,076 488,288 0.5 0.0 1.1 514,738 470,970 511,206 477,176 3,865,467 3,594,915 7.5

 With unfilled orders............................ 176,206 173,442 175,466 1.6 -1.2 0.9 184,450 161,449 189,848 170,533 1,380,446 1,282,742 7.6

 Durable goods industries......................... 253,094 251,307 251,528 0.7 -0.1 1.7 267,248 232,167 269,575 247,126 1,983,757 1,849,525 7.3

 Wood products....................................... 9,521 9,524 9,466 0.0 0.6 0.6 10,231 9,764 10,303 9,616 76,278 73,046 4.4

 Nonmetallic mineral products.................... 10,957 10,959 10,929 0.0 0.3 0.5 12,453 11,411 11,796 11,818 87,414 83,933 4.1

 Primary metals....................................... 21,787 21,650 21,480 0.6 0.8 0.9 23,182 20,937 22,440 19,867 172,105 148,983 15.5

 Iron and steel mills............................ 11,084 10,948 10,750 1.2 1.8 1.3 11,866 10,722 11,289 9,803 85,727 72,953 17.5

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals.......... 9,316 9,309 9,367 0.1 -0.6 0.7 9,815 8,906 9,635 8,616 75,134 65,230 15.2

 Ferrous metal foundries....................... 1,387 1,393 1,363 -0.4 2.2 -0.8 1,501 1,309 1,516 1,448 11,244 10,800 4.1

 Fabricated metal products....................... 32,951 32,926 32,884 0.1 0.1 0.4 35,475 32,123 34,683 32,857 262,111 238,049 10.1

 Machinery............................................. 32,818 33,000 32,754 -0.6 0.8 0.5 33,157 31,219 35,455 31,200 261,136 242,256 7.8

 Farm machinery................................. 2,440 2,614 2,665 -6.7 -1.9 2.4 2,224 2,485 2,706 2,057 21,424 17,695 21.1

 Construction machinery..................... 3,028 3,005 2,973 0.8 1.1 0.5 3,007 2,802 3,131 2,633 23,711 20,967 13.1

 Mining, oil field, and 

 gas field machinery.......................... 1,538 1,541 1,507 -0.2 2.3 -6.8 1,528 1,454 1,517 1,467 12,015 11,232 7.0

 Industrial machinery.......................... 2,652 2,729 2,652 -2.8 2.9 3.0 2,569 2,606 3,025 2,560 20,423 20,409 0.1

 Photographic equipment...................... 521 605 554 -13.9 9.2 5.9 493 570 643 486 4,228 4,136 2.2

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............ 3,879 3,916 3,916 -0.9 0.0 0.4 4,242 4,172 4,966 3,909 31,614 29,966 5.5

 Metalworking machinery..................... 2,682 2,772 2,761 -3.2 0.4 2.8 2,713 2,512 2,884 2,691 21,599 19,936 8.3

 Turbines, generators, and other

 power transmission equipment....... 4,385 4,103 4,122 6.9 -0.5 -0.5 4,506 3,901 4,230 4,085 33,349 30,576 9.1

 Material handling equipment............... 2,732 2,691 2,687 1.5 0.1 -1.6 2,958 2,517 2,736 2,705 21,492 19,729 8.9

 Computers and electronic products2

.......... 27,166 27,139 26,777 0.1 1.4 0.5 27,348 25,488 29,261 25,678 206,381 194,664 6.0

 Computers........................................ 843 840 781 0.4 7.6 -2.4 886 816 954 812 6,074 6,631 -8.4

 Computer storage devices..................... 311 343 263 -9.3 30.4 -2.6 269 235 417 471 2,095 4,305 -51.3

 Other peripheral equipment................ 781 788 716 -0.9 10.1 -2.8 722 783 886 665 5,625 4,814 16.8

 Nondefense communications

 equipment.................................... 3,225 3,248 3,250 -0.7 -0.1 2.5 2,939 2,822 4,041 2,644 24,147 21,580 11.9

 Defense communications equipment.... 304 296 290 2.7 2.1 11.1 312 283 277 263 2,181 1,931 12.9

 Audio and video equipment.................... 230 235 225 -2.1 4.4 -0.4 232 207 213 255 1,643 1,836 -10.5

 Electronic components......................... 3,391 3,345 3,416 1.4 -2.1 -2.7 3,658 3,308 3,799 3,811 27,825 27,083 2.7

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 1,531 1,532 1,528 -0.1 0.3 1.7 1,533 1,369 1,627 1,487 11,925 11,239 6.1

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment..................................... 2,786 2,751 2,715 1.3 1.3 -1.3 2,808 2,508 2,856 2,715 21,302 20,497 3.9

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments................. 9,508 9,524 9,243 -0.2 3.0 2.3 9,282 8,864 10,331 8,188 70,781 62,451 13.3

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components................................... 11,424 11,322 11,258 0.9 0.6 0.2 12,063 10,884 12,080 11,241 89,305 84,550 5.6

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,054 1,045 1,068 0.9 -2.2 -2.1 1,103 1,027 1,068 1,114 8,367 8,519 -1.8

 Household appliances........................ 1,742 1,718 1,708 1.4 0.6 1.8 1,831 1,573 1,824 1,806 13,383 13,830 -3.2

 Electrical equipment............................ 3,141 3,150 3,088 -0.3 2.0 0.6 3,276 2,916 3,514 3,048 24,800 23,813 4.1

 Batteries........................................... 929 970 949 -4.2 2.2 -0.8 996 882 906 1,027 7,176 6,944 3.3

 Transportation equipment........................ 86,212 84,500 85,652 2.0 -1.3 4.2 92,621 70,828 92,312 84,592 668,031 630,265 6.0

 Automobiles..................................... 8,564 8,563 8,781 0.0 -2.5 -1.3 9,589 6,437 9,309 11,160 72,869 79,155 -7.9

 Light trucks and utility vehicles.............. 20,989 21,712 19,809 -3.3 9.6 13.1 23,462 17,280 20,235 17,883 153,642 129,183 18.9

 Heavy duty trucks ............................. 2,810 2,797 2,741 0.5 2.0 11.7 2,951 2,809 3,005 2,725 21,647 18,849 14.8

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers.................................... 27,426 27,199 26,907 0.8 1.1 1.2 29,869 23,479 28,337 27,894 216,744 206,608 4.9

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 12,597 10,660 14,167 18.2 -24.8 5.7 12,810 9,237 16,825 12,595 99,380 100,275 -0.9

 Defense aircraft and parts.................. 4,672 4,739 4,332 -1.4 9.4 -5.0 4,671 4,017 5,022 4,397 34,304 33,131 3.5

 Ships and boats................................. 2,726 2,798 2,900 -2.6 -3.5 2.3 2,626 2,562 3,122 2,558 22,098 21,117 4.6

 Furniture and related products.................. 6,557 6,532 6,521 0.4 0.2 -1.6 7,175 6,569 6,612 7,019 52,275 50,376 3.8

 Miscellaneous durable goods................. 13,701 13,755 13,807 -0.4 -0.4 0.2 13,543 12,944 14,633 13,238 108,721 103,403 5.1

 Nondurable goods industries..................... 250,915 250,354 250,113 0.2 0.1 0.4 261,179 250,701 256,085 242,441 1,985,083 1,839,519 7.9

 Food products....................................... 67,506 67,509 67,583 0.0 -0.1 -0.3 68,606 65,177 67,095 68,573 533,338 523,736 1.8

 Grain and oilseed milling....................... 7,938 7,956 7,957 -0.2 0.0 -1.7 8,100 7,626 7,531 7,858 62,428 58,426 6.8

 Dairy products.................................. 9,366 9,400 9,474 -0.4 -0.8 -2.0 9,570 9,281 9,330 9,852 75,224 76,905 -2.2

 Meat, poultry, and seafood products... 19,398 19,385 19,489 0.1 -0.5 -0.3 19,838 19,276 20,419 20,038 155,408 153,733 1.1

 Beverage and tobacco products................ 12,972 12,700 12,557 2.1 1.1 1.1 13,513 12,697 13,260 12,870 100,236 100,409 -0.2

 Beverages......................................... 8,829 8,824 8,697 0.1 1.5 -0.7 9,370 8,821 9,400 8,874 69,742 69,930 -0.3

 Tobacco............................................ 4,143 3,876 3,860 6.9 0.4 5.5 4,143 3,876 3,860 3,996 30,494 30,479 0.0

 Textile mills........................................... 2,531 2,532 2,519 0.0 0.5 0.8 2,701 2,494 2,670 2,588 20,278 19,729 2.8

 Textile products................................... 2,302 2,295 2,257 0.3 1.7 0.2 2,428 2,336 2,452 2,183 18,281 17,025 7.4

 Apparel................................................ 970 960 976 1.0 -1.6 1.3 1,087 989 924 1,003 7,408 6,935 6.8

 Leather and allied products...................... 423 422 423 0.2 -0.2 1.9 426 418 445 410 3,344 3,332 0.4

 Paper products...................................... 16,283 16,134 16,038 0.9 0.6 -0.5 17,098 16,126 16,291 16,201 128,667 121,413 6.0

 Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills....... 6,668 6,678 6,513 -0.1 2.5 -0.9 6,991 6,790 6,530 6,784 52,641 50,994 3.2

 Paperboard containers........................ 5,648 5,490 5,541 2.9 -0.9 -0.8 6,030 5,444 5,689 5,758 44,683 42,579 4.9

 Printing................................................. 6,633 6,686 6,675 -0.8 0.2 1.5 6,886 6,369 6,525 6,702 51,909 51,380 1.0

 Petroleum and coal products.................. 56,059 56,106 55,932 -0.1 0.3 1.2 60,138 59,913 57,596 47,494 438,345 342,258 28.1

 Petroleum refineries.......................... 51,971 52,038 51,924 -0.1 0.2 1.0 55,110 55,216 53,061 43,015 406,158 312,622 29.9

 Chemical products..................................... 65,442 65,163 65,354 0.4 -0.3 0.6 67,349 64,255 67,765 64,024 523,017 496,664 5.3

 Pesticides, fertilizers, and other

 agricultural chemicals....................... 2,860 2,751 2,909 4.0 -5.4 13.4 2,554 2,380 3,222 1,915 22,469 20,228 11.1

 Pharmaceuticals and medicines............. 21,452 21,292 21,196 0.8 0.5 1.2 22,096 20,689 21,518 20,797 167,497 153,266 9.3

 Paints, coatings, and adhesives.......... 3,805 3,759 3,817 1.2 -1.5 -1.0 4,176 3,893 4,117 3,935 31,532 29,271 7.7

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 19,794 19,847 19,799 -0.3 0.2 0.3 20,947 19,927 21,062 20,393 160,260 156,638 2.3

Year to date

p

 Preliminary 

r Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments and new orders 

include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal variation, based on the results 

of the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 

2

 Estimates and percent changes of shipments for the semiconductor industry are included in computers and electronic products, and all other applicable aggregate totals. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and 

nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data limitations see 

<http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 
Table 2. Value of Manufacturers' New Orders for Industry Groups1

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted 

Monthly Percent Change Monthly

Industry % Change

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2018p 2017 2017

All manufacturing industries2........................ 510,466 498,925 501,612 2.3 -0.5 0.6 525,527 477,354 528,244 476,236 3,972,062 3,658,902 8.6

 Excluding transportation2

...................... 415,019 414,532 414,030 0.1 0.1 0.4 429,235 408,497 429,703 398,653 3,287,832 3,043,641 8.0

 Excluding defense2

.............................. 491,981 485,507 486,712 1.3 -0.2 0.9 510,123 467,329 508,238 466,865 3,863,391 3,570,405 8.2

 With unfilled orders 2............................. 186,627 174,663 179,563 6.8 -2.7 -0.3 185,941 159,968 196,096 161,367 1,414,500 1,283,373 10.2

 Durable goods industries2......................... 259,551 248,571 251,499 4.4 -1.2 0.9 264,348 226,653 272,159 233,795 1,986,979 1,819,383 9.2

 Primary metals........................................ 22,048 21,876 21,892 0.8 -0.1 -0.2 22,563 21,284 22,737 19,551 175,198 150,126 16.7

 Iron and steel mills.............................. 11,177 11,123 10,912 0.5 1.9 0.2 11,347 10,957 11,492 9,765 88,285 73,997 19.3

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals.......... 9,410 9,320 9,570 1.0 -2.6 -0.9 9,650 8,970 9,738 8,326 75,474 65,098 15.9

 Ferrous metal foundries....................... 1,461 1,433 1,410 2.0 1.6 1.1 1,566 1,357 1,507 1,460 11,439 11,031 3.7

 Fabricated metal products........................ 33,546 33,391 33,253 0.5 0.4 -0.6 35,233 32,469 34,468 32,523 269,955 243,942 10.7

 Machinery............................................. 32,965 33,227 33,087 -0.8 0.4 0.3 33,156 31,661 34,917 31,308 264,654 248,455 6.5

 Construction machinery........................ 3,176 3,036 2,942 4.6 3.2 -2.0 3,181 2,567 2,897 2,740 23,783 22,095 7.6

 Mining, oil field, and

 gas field machinery.......................... 1,493 1,545 1,343 -3.4 15.0 -10.0 1,537 1,448 1,272 1,515 11,738 11,281 4.1

 Industrial machinery............................ 2,642 2,554 2,668 3.4 -4.3 2.6 2,515 2,460 3,017 2,562 20,405 20,744 -1.6

 Photographic equipment....................... 488 624 568 -21.8 9.9 18.6 475 633 533 308 3,916 3,873 1.1

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............... 3,985 4,064 3,996 -1.9 1.7 -4.4 4,276 4,295 4,945 3,869 32,537 30,393 7.1

 Metalworking machinery....................... 2,648 2,544 2,639 4.1 -3.6 -2.3 2,666 2,352 2,660 2,691 21,714 20,412 6.4

 Turbines, generators, and other 

 power transmission equipment........... 4,328 4,136 3,990 4.6 3.7 -0.7 4,473 4,106 4,190 3,987 33,134 30,952 7.0

 Material handling equipment.................. 2,876 3,020 3,080 -4.8 -1.9 7.4 2,917 2,814 3,202 2,695 22,889 21,034 8.8

 Computers and electronic products2........... 23,386 23,467 23,271 -0.3 0.8 0.8 22,240 21,168 25,875 20,484 177,685 164,936 7.7

 Computers........................................ 865 855 784 1.2 9.1 -3.1 908 831 957 840 6,251 6,815 -8.3

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 3,341 3,331 3,462 0.3 -3.8 0.0 2,888 2,769 4,053 2,650 25,095 23,197 8.2

 Defense communications equipment....... 318 302 270 5.3 11.9 2.7 329 267 305 262 2,227 2,008 10.9

 Electronic components......................... 3,343 3,429 3,587 -2.5 -4.4 -0.7 3,567 3,546 3,729 3,895 28,560 27,558 3.6

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 1,568 1,603 1,553 -2.2 3.2 -3.8 1,569 1,411 1,701 1,486 12,512 11,729 6.7

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 2,882 2,796 2,854 3.1 -2.0 5.9 2,642 2,295 3,095 2,246 20,918 19,225 8.8

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments..................... 9,455 9,505 9,333 -0.5 1.8 2.0 8,798 8,564 10,323 7,512 70,808 61,925 14.3

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components................................... 11,494 11,472 11,508 0.2 -0.3 1.5 12,027 10,719 12,164 11,157 90,048 84,884 6.1

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,048 1,048 1,119 0.0 -6.3 7.8 1,077 1,010 1,155 1,091 8,431 8,650 -2.5

 Household appliances.......................... 1,720 1,696 1,757 1.4 -3.5 3.1 1,809 1,506 1,817 1,860 13,551 13,905 -2.5

 Electrical equipment............................ 3,140 3,157 3,111 -0.5 1.5 0.8 3,246 2,948 3,421 3,038 24,735 23,721 4.3

 Transportation equipment........................ 95,447 84,393 87,582 13.1 -3.6 2.0 96,292 68,857 98,541 77,583 684,230 615,261 11.2

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers..................................... 27,558 27,292 26,873 1.0 1.6 1.1 30,382 23,155 27,655 28,072 216,840 207,434 4.5

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 17,101 10,110 14,257 69.1 -29.1 1.3 14,219 8,742 18,025 8,150 109,226 91,317 19.6

 Defense aircraft and parts.................... 5,186 4,433 6,549 17.0 -32.3 19.8 3,905 3,566 8,694 3,180 34,062 34,913 -2.4

 Ships and boats.................................. 3,507 2,944 2,205 19.1 33.5 -31.2 2,384 1,569 4,005 1,206 24,048 16,203 48.4

 Furniture and related products................... 6,494 6,507 6,696 -0.2 -2.8 1.0 6,618 6,376 6,717 6,506 52,768 51,345 2.8

 Nondurable goods industries..................... 250,915 250,354 250,113 0.2 0.1 0.4 261,179 250,701 256,085 242,441 1,985,083 1,839,519 7.9

Year to date

p

 Preliminary 

r

 Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments 

and new orders include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal 

variation, based on the results of the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 2

 Data on new orders are not available for the semiconductor industry. Estimates and percent changes for new orders exclude semiconductor industry data. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, 

response, and nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data limitations see 

<http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website 

at <www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 
Table 3. Value of Manufacturers' Unfilled Orders for Industry Groups1

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted

Monthly Percent Change Monthly % Change

Industry August

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2017

All manufacturing industries2...................... 1,176,482 1,166,061 1,164,840 0.9 0.1 0.4 1,170,466 1,168,975 1,170,456 1,115,298 4.9

 Excluding transportation2...................... 365,499 364,313 362,985 0.3 0.4 0.6 364,428 366,608 366,118 345,319 5.5

 Excluding defense2

............................. 989,302 983,644 982,256 0.6 0.1 0.3 984,987 985,211 984,819 937,967 5.0

 Durable goods industries2........................ 1,176,482 1,166,061 1,164,840 0.9 0.1 0.4 1,170,466 1,168,975 1,170,456 1,115,298 4.9

 Primary metals........................................ 31,333 31,072 30,846 0.8 0.7 1.4 30,971 31,590 31,243 27,018 14.6

 Iron and steel mills............................... 16,855 16,762 16,587 0.6 1.1 1.0 16,776 17,295 17,060 13,898 20.7

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals............. 11,127 11,033 11,022 0.9 0.1 1.9 10,846 11,011 10,947 10,025 8.2

 Ferrous metal foundries........................ 3,351 3,277 3,237 2.3 1.2 1.5 3,349 3,284 3,236 3,095 8.2

 Fabricated metal products......................... 84,765 84,170 83,705 0.7 0.6 0.4 85,218 85,460 85,114 77,590 9.8

 Machinery.............................................. 104,828 104,681 104,454 0.1 0.2 0.3 104,855 104,856 104,414 102,106 2.7

 Construction machinery......................... 6,328 6,180 6,149 2.4 0.5 -0.5 6,070 5,896 6,131 5,809 4.5

 Mining, oil field, and

 gas field machinery.......................... 4,292 4,337 4,333 -1.0 0.1 -3.6 4,262 4,253 4,259 4,555 -6.4

 Industrial machinery............................. 8,400 8,410 8,585 -0.1 -2.0 0.2 8,448 8,502 8,648 8,825 -4.3

 Photographic equipment........................ 1,610 1,643 1,624 -2.0 1.2 0.9 1,518 1,536 1,473 1,432 6.0

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment................ 7,070 6,964 6,816 1.5 2.2 1.2 7,034 7,000 6,877 5,950 18.2

 Metalworking machinery........................ 7,789 7,823 8,051 -0.4 -2.8 -1.5 7,880 7,927 8,087 8,300 -5.1

 Turbines, generators, and other 

 power transmission equipment............ 29,439 29,496 29,463 -0.2 0.1 -0.4 29,605 29,638 29,433 30,437 -2.7

 Material handling equipment................... 12,816 12,672 12,343 1.1 2.7 3.3 12,822 12,863 12,566 11,284 13.6

 Computers and electronic products2............. 115,492 115,308 115,023 0.2 0.2 0.5 114,606 115,323 115,610 110,529 3.7

 Computers......................................... 2,055 2,033 2,018 1.1 0.7 0.1 2,055 2,033 2,018 1,763 16.6

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 24,787 24,671 24,588 0.5 0.3 0.9 24,577 24,628 24,681 22,664 8.4

 Defense communications equipment........ 1,450 1,436 1,430 1.0 0.4 -1.4 1,476 1,459 1,475 1,430 3.2

 Electronic components.......................... 12,555 12,603 12,519 -0.4 0.7 1.4 12,557 12,648 12,410 11,587 8.4

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 19,665 19,628 19,557 0.2 0.4 0.1 19,660 19,624 19,582 18,974 3.6

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 27,073 26,977 26,932 0.4 0.2 0.5 26,821 26,987 27,200 27,445 -2.3

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments...................... 27,907 27,960 27,979 -0.2 -0.1 0.3 27,460 27,944 28,244 26,666 3.0

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components.................................... 19,926 19,856 19,706 0.4 0.8 1.3 19,775 19,811 19,976 18,982 4.2

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,405 1,411 1,408 -0.4 0.2 3.8 1,409 1,435 1,452 1,365 3.2

 Household appliances........................... 1,385 1,407 1,429 -1.6 -1.5 3.6 1,352 1,374 1,441 1,168 15.8

 Electrical equipment............................. 7,773 7,774 7,767 0.0 0.1 0.3 7,770 7,800 7,768 7,719 0.7

 Transportation equipment......................... 810,983 801,748 801,855 1.2 0.0 0.2 806,038 802,367 804,338 769,979 4.7

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers...................................... 26,830 26,698 26,605 0.5 0.3 -0.1 26,603 26,090 26,414 25,308 5.1

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 606,116 601,612 602,162 0.7 -0.1 0.0 602,956 601,547 602,042 578,754 4.2

 Defense aircraft and parts..................... 72,587 72,073 72,379 0.7 -0.4 3.2 72,252 73,018 73,469 73,578 -1.8

 Ships and boats.................................. 29,920 29,139 28,993 2.7 0.5 -2.3 29,004 29,246 30,239 24,314 19.3

 Furniture and related products................... 8,524 8,587 8,612 -0.7 -0.3 2.1 8,372 8,929 9,122 8,460 -1.0

p

 Preliminary 

r

 Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of 

shipments and new orders include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, 

as well as seasonal variation, based on the results of the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 2

 Data on unfilled orders are not available for the semiconductor industry. Estimates and percent changes for unfilled orders exclude semiconductor industry data. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of 

coverage, response, and nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and 

data limitations see <http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our 

website at <www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>.
Table 4. Value of Manufacturers' Inventories for Industry Groups1

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted

Monthly Percent Change Monthly % Change

Industry August

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2017

 All manufacturing industries...................... 675,610 676,154 670,214 -0.1 0.9 0.2 679,325 680,361 665,586 646,655 5.1

 Excluding transportation........................ 546,208 544,978 543,294 0.2 0.3 0.6 549,533 548,040 540,620 521,086 5.5

 Excluding defense............................. 648,616 648,996 643,016 -0.1 0.9 0.2 652,397 652,923 638,283 619,440 5.3

 With unfilled orders............................. 330,929 332,490 327,658 -0.5 1.5 -0.1 333,919 336,057 325,683 318,774 4.8

 Durable goods industries........................ 407,201 408,559 403,440 -0.3 1.3 0.0 410,422 412,243 400,579 392,232 4.6

 Wood products........................................ 12,269 12,243 12,188 0.2 0.5 0.7 12,149 12,087 11,965 11,614 4.6

 Nonmetallic mineral products..................... 14,514 14,499 14,391 0.1 0.8 1.0 14,426 14,575 14,546 13,705 5.3

 Primary metals......................................... 35,574 35,554 35,264 0.1 0.8 1.5 35,916 35,987 35,115 32,695 9.9

 Iron and steel mills............................... 20,075 20,060 19,860 0.1 1.0 1.3 20,281 20,298 19,737 18,400 10.2

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals............ 13,478 13,486 13,410 -0.1 0.6 1.7 13,611 13,668 13,398 12,378 10.0

 Ferrous metal foundries........................ 2,021 2,008 1,994 0.6 0.7 0.9 2,024 2,021 1,980 1,917 5.6

 Fabricated metal products......................... 53,572 53,420 53,035 0.3 0.7 1.1 53,831 54,065 53,053 49,679 8.4

 Machinery.............................................. 68,756 68,421 68,344 0.5 0.1 0.5 69,624 68,735 67,755 66,635 4.5

 Farm machinery.................................. 3,796 3,685 3,638 3.0 1.3 0.7 3,570 3,454 3,606 3,391 5.3

 Construction machinery......................... 5,418 5,496 5,508 -1.4 -0.2 -0.1 5,420 5,464 5,475 5,202 4.2

 Mining, oil field, 

 and gas field machinery.................... 5,371 5,402 5,462 -0.6 -1.1 0.4 5,446 5,413 5,451 5,615 -3.0

 Industrial machinery............................. 8,564 8,453 8,355 1.3 1.2 1.0 8,665 8,396 8,334 8,006 8.2

 Photographic equipment....................... 1,700 1,692 1,714 0.5 -1.3 -0.8 1,762 1,731 1,674 1,725 2.1

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............... 5,029 4,964 4,923 1.3 0.8 -0.5 5,070 5,005 4,936 4,949 2.4

 Metalworking machinery........................ 5,988 5,959 5,949 0.5 0.2 1.5 6,084 5,986 5,868 5,792 5.0

 Turbines, generators, and other

 power transmission equipment............ 9,447 9,500 9,648 -0.6 -1.5 1.1 9,754 9,758 9,437 9,523 2.4

 Material handling equipment.................. 5,659 5,619 5,619 0.7 0.0 -0.2 5,858 5,767 5,651 5,505 6.4

 Computers and electronic products2

............ 42,965 43,136 43,371 -0.4 -0.5 0.1 43,723 43,770 43,189 43,139 1.4

 Computers......................................... 1,497 1,488 1,529 0.6 -2.7 0.1 1,551 1,531 1,546 1,545 0.4

 Computer storage devices.................... 1,016 1,027 1,047 -1.1 -1.9 -0.6 1,044 1,075 1,048 1,097 -4.8

 Other peripheral equipment................... 1,165 1,151 1,147 1.2 0.3 2.7 1,224 1,184 1,125 1,209 1.2

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 4,677 4,710 4,723 -0.7 -0.3 -1.0 4,818 4,729 4,687 4,799 0.4

 Defense communications equipment........ 661 677 693 -2.4 -2.3 2.4 661 677 693 678 -2.5

 Audio and video equipment.................... 564 559 570 0.9 -1.9 2.7 594 560 542 612 -2.9

 Electronic components.......................... 7,214 7,268 7,289 -0.7 -0.3 0.2 7,203 7,418 7,247 7,245 -0.6

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 2,547 2,571 2,571 -0.9 0.0 -0.3 2,598 2,615 2,555 2,624 -1.0

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 2,636 2,618 2,639 0.7 -0.8 1.0 2,646 2,671 2,649 2,613 1.3

 Electromedical, measuring 

 and control instruments...................... 15,261 15,243 15,301 0.1 -0.4 0.0 15,622 15,473 15,222 15,059 3.7

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components.................................... 18,898 18,835 18,716 0.3 0.6 1.0 19,238 19,214 18,852 18,028 6.7

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 2,241 2,229 2,231 0.5 -0.1 -0.3 2,258 2,278 2,256 2,140 5.5

 Household appliances........................... 2,813 2,821 2,808 -0.3 0.5 -0.6 2,907 2,890 2,799 2,801 3.8

 Electrical equipment............................. 5,210 5,187 5,153 0.4 0.7 0.6 5,291 5,308 5,155 4,960 6.7

 Batteries............................................ 1,839 1,841 1,863 -0.1 -1.2 0.6 1,926 1,911 1,919 1,888 2.0

 Transportation equipment......................... 129,402 131,176 126,920 -1.4 3.4 -1.4 129,792 132,321 124,966 125,569 3.4

 Automobiles....................................... 4,147 4,095 4,097 1.3 0.0 3.5 4,140 4,176 3,877 3,953 4.7

 Light trucks and utility vehicles.............. 4,738 4,625 4,626 2.4 0.0 -0.7 4,884 4,766 4,244 4,183 16.8

 Heavy duty trucks ............................... 2,242 2,249 2,164 -0.3 3.9 1.1 2,271 2,303 2,224 1,988 14.2

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers...................................... 25,480 25,522 25,539 -0.2 -0.1 0.7 25,698 25,818 25,113 23,978 7.2

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 65,268 66,910 62,838 -2.5 6.5 -3.6 65,069 67,085 61,898 63,407 2.6

 Defense aircraft and parts..................... 12,888 12,911 12,846 -0.2 0.5 0.6 12,930 12,943 12,843 13,181 -1.9

 Ships and boats.................................. 3,041 2,995 2,994 1.5 0.0 3.1 2,995 3,036 3,037 3,038 -1.4

 Furniture and related products.................... 7,891 7,891 7,887 0.0 0.1 -0.3 8,030 8,076 8,092 7,794 3.0

 Miscellaneous durable goods..................... 23,360 23,384 23,324 -0.1 0.3 -0.3 23,693 23,413 23,046 23,374 1.4

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 268,409 267,595 266,774 0.3 0.3 0.6 268,903 268,118 265,007 254,423 5.7

 Food products........................................ 54,007 54,090 54,455 -0.2 -0.7 -0.4 54,484 53,482 53,053 54,719 -0.4

 Grain and oilseed milling........................ 5,403 5,378 5,362 0.5 0.3 -2.1 5,197 5,130 5,232 5,250 -1.0

 Dairy products.................................... 7,489 7,544 7,588 -0.7 -0.6 -0.2 7,656 7,804 7,836 7,919 -3.3

 Meat, poultry, and seafood products....... 9,260 9,297 9,259 -0.4 0.4 -0.3 9,427 9,373 9,110 9,297 1.4

 Beverage and tobacco products................ 24,477 24,477 24,522 0.0 -0.2 -0.6 23,700 23,651 23,861 23,278 1.8

 Beverages......................................... 19,920 19,876 19,872 0.2 0.0 -0.5 19,468 19,392 19,448 18,961 2.7

 Tobacco............................................ 4,557 4,601 4,650 -1.0 -1.1 -1.0 4,232 4,259 4,413 4,317 -2.0

 Textile mills............................................ 3,251 3,242 3,212 0.3 0.9 0.2 3,267 3,264 3,228 3,138 4.1

 Textile products...................................... 3,496 3,473 3,419 0.7 1.6 0.1 3,506 3,463 3,414 3,373 3.9

 Apparel................................................. 1,917 1,919 1,898 -0.1 1.1 2.4 2,026 2,024 1,896 1,956 3.6

 Leather and allied products....................... 779 780 781 -0.1 -0.1 0.1 805 804 797 793 1.5

 Paper products....................................... 16,114 16,088 15,995 0.2 0.6 0.6 16,152 16,202 15,871 15,729 2.7

 Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills........... 6,523 6,515 6,526 0.1 -0.2 0.5 6,504 6,533 6,485 6,562 -0.9

 Paperboard containers......................... 5,135 5,117 5,033 0.4 1.7 0.6 5,116 5,130 4,958 4,772 7.2

 Printing.................................................. 5,410 5,427 5,442 -0.3 -0.3 -0.5 5,529 5,447 5,406 5,515 0.3

 Petroleum and coal products..................... 42,735 42,265 41,578 1.1 1.7 1.3 42,850 43,043 41,680 34,801 23.1

 Petroleum refineries............................. 36,986 36,606 36,084 1.0 1.4 1.0 37,020 37,284 36,116 30,001 23.4

 Chemical products..................................... 89,489 89,229 89,004 0.3 0.3 1.1 89,922 90,163 89,370 85,873 4.7

 Pesticides, fertilizers, and other

 agricultural chemicals........................ 4,613 4,613 4,587 0.0 0.6 -2.7 4,356 4,335 4,281 4,465 -2.4

 Pharmaceuticals and medicines.............. 36,553 36,444 36,380 0.3 0.2 1.1 36,726 36,927 37,042 34,621 6.1

 Paints, coatings, and adhesives.............. 3,906 3,888 3,883 0.5 0.1 -0.1 3,858 3,919 3,954 3,672 5.1

 Plastics and rubber products..................... 26,734 26,605 26,468 0.5 0.5 1.2 26,662 26,575 26,431 25,248 5.6

p Preliminary 

r Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments and new 

orders include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal variation, based on 

the results of the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 

2

 Estimates of inventories for the semiconductor industry data are included in computers and electronic products, and all other applicable aggregate totals. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and 

nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data limitations see 

<http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 
Table 5. Value of Manufacturers' Shipments, New Orders, Unfilled Orders, and Total Inventories for 

 Topical Series1, 2

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted

Monthly Percent Change Monthly Year to date

Industry % Change6

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2018p 2017 2017

SHIPMENTS

 All manufacturing industries................... 504,009 501,661 501,641 0.5 0.0 1.0 528,427 482,868 525,660 489,567 3,968,840 3,689,044 7.6

 Construction materials and supplies....... 51,721 51,682 51,533 0.1 0.3 0.4 57,184 53,191 56,072 53,382 413,592 388,143 6.6

 Information technology......................... 24,890 24,881 24,234 0.0 2.7 1.1 24,649 23,203 27,209 22,434 187,531 172,388 8.8

 Computers and related products........... 1,935 1,971 1,760 -1.8 12.0 -2.6 1,877 1,834 2,257 1,948 13,794 15,750 -12.4

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 59,789 60,271 58,238 -0.8 3.5 5.0 65,871 50,005 60,886 59,662 464,902 433,795 7.2

 Capital goods...................................... 88,823 86,619 89,741 2.5 -3.5 1.9 89,583 80,297 98,632 83,519 689,946 641,063 7.6

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 77,189 75,135 78,277 2.7 -4.0 2.3 77,989 70,150 86,421 73,188 601,759 562,857 6.9

 Excluding aircraft............................. 68,692 68,801 68,008 -0.2 1.2 1.0 69,063 64,912 73,927 64,934 535,333 497,646 7.6

 Defense capital goods4........................ 11,634 11,484 11,464 1.3 0.2 -0.7 11,594 10,147 12,211 10,331 88,187 78,206 12.8

 Consumer goods.................................. 213,304 213,593 211,502 -0.1 1.0 1.4 223,189 206,275 215,119 203,610 1,670,008 1,523,432 9.6

 Consumer durable goods..................... 43,249 43,877 42,213 -1.4 3.9 5.5 46,894 36,188 43,854 42,454 334,718 313,245 6.9

 Consumer nondurable goods................ 170,055 169,716 169,289 0.2 0.3 0.4 176,295 170,087 171,265 161,156 1,335,290 1,210,187 10.3

 All manufacturing industries5

................... 510,466 498,925 501,612 2.3 -0.5 0.6 525,527 477,354 528,244 476,236 3,972,062 3,658,902 8.6

 Construction materials and supplies....... 52,085 51,911 51,766 0.3 0.3 -0.2 56,757 53,310 55,813 53,037 419,841 392,603 6.9

 Information technology......................... 25,188 25,263 24,824 -0.3 1.8 1.3 24,047 22,628 27,544 21,038 189,196 172,915 9.4

 Computers and related products........... 1,957 1,986 1,763 -1.5 12.6 -2.9 1,899 1,849 2,260 1,976 13,971 15,934 -12.3

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 59,921 60,364 58,204 -0.7 3.7 5.0 66,384 49,681 60,204 59,840 464,998 434,621 7.0

 Capital goods...................................... 97,052 86,635 90,285 12.0 -4.0 0.0 91,118 78,652 102,194 75,634 706,220 636,713 10.9

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 81,000 75,540 78,473 7.2 -3.7 2.2 77,720 70,230 86,576 67,648 614,331 564,693 8.8

 Excluding aircraft............................. 69,207 69,863 68,832 -0.9 1.5 0.8 68,329 65,224 73,588 63,533 541,403 504,534 7.3

 Defense capital goods4........................ 16,052 11,095 11,812 44.7 -6.1 -12.6 13,398 8,422 15,618 7,986 91,889 72,020 27.6

 Consumer goods.................................. 213,139 213,659 211,622 -0.2 1.0 1.4 222,955 206,369 214,956 203,662 1,670,058 1,523,710 9.6

 Consumer durable goods..................... 43,084 43,943 42,333 -2.0 3.8 5.8 46,660 36,282 43,691 42,506 334,768 313,523 6.8

 Consumer nondurable goods.............. 170,055 169,716 169,289 0.2 0.3 0.4 176,295 170,087 171,265 161,156 1,335,290 1,210,187 10.3

 All manufacturing industries5

................... 1,176,482 1,166,061 1,164,840 0.9 0.1 0.4 1,170,466 1,168,975 1,170,456 1,115,298 (X) (X) 4.9

 Construction materials and supplies....... 58,483 58,119 57,890 0.6 0.4 0.4 58,820 59,247 59,128 52,586 (X) (X) 11.9

 Information technology......................... 113,910 113,612 113,230 0.3 0.3 0.5 112,811 113,413 113,988 109,104 (X) (X) 3.4

 Computers and related products........... 2,055 2,033 2,018 1.1 0.7 0.1 2,055 2,033 2,018 1,763 (X) (X) 16.6

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 26,830 26,698 26,605 0.5 0.3 -0.1 26,603 26,090 26,414 25,308 (X) (X) 5.1

 Capital goods...................................... 870,072 861,843 861,827 1.0 0.0 0.1 865,367 863,832 865,477 834,364 (X) (X) 3.7

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 718,487 714,676 714,271 0.5 0.1 0.0 715,384 715,653 715,573 692,108 (X) (X) 3.4

 Excluding aircraft............................. 221,246 220,731 219,669 0.2 0.5 0.4 220,560 221,294 220,982 214,472 (X) (X) 2.8

 Defense capital goods4........................ 151,585 147,167 147,556 3.0 -0.3 0.2 149,983 148,179 149,904 142,256 (X) (X) 5.4

 Consumer goods.................................. 5,076 5,241 5,175 -3.1 1.3 2.4 4,861 5,095 5,001 4,844 (X) (X) 0.4

 Consumer durable goods..................... 5,076 5,241 5,175 -3.1 1.3 2.4 4,861 5,095 5,001 4,844 (X) (X) 0.4

 All manufacturing industries................... 675,610 676,154 670,214 -0.1 0.9 0.2 679,325 680,361 665,586 646,655 (X) (X) 5.1

 Construction materials and supplies....... 72,500 72,294 71,664 0.3 0.9 0.9 72,571 72,807 71,749 67,403 (X) (X) 7.7

 Information technology......................... 38,765 38,737 38,840 0.1 -0.3 0.5 39,626 39,315 38,703 38,443 (X) (X) 3.1

 Computers and related products........... 3,678 3,666 3,723 0.3 -1.5 0.7 3,819 3,790 3,719 3,851 (X) (X) -0.8

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 36,607 36,491 36,426 0.3 0.2 0.8 36,993 37,063 35,458 34,102 (X) (X) 8.5

 Capital goods...................................... 200,161 201,630 197,785 -0.7 1.9 -0.6 201,972 203,374 196,893 195,500 (X) (X) 3.3

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 177,531 178,814 174,904 -0.7 2.2 -1.0 179,450 180,310 173,904 172,772 (X) (X) 3.9

 Excluding aircraft............................. 124,202 123,886 123,700 0.3 0.2 0.4 126,294 125,182 123,231 121,431 (X) (X) 4.0

 Defense capital goods4........................ 22,630 22,816 22,881 -0.8 -0.3 1.9 22,522 23,064 22,989 22,728 (X) (X) -0.9

 Consumer goods.................................. 202,708 202,086 201,694 0.3 0.2 0.3 203,430 202,286 199,369 191,925 (X) (X) 6.0

 Consumer durable goods..................... 30,423 30,281 30,217 0.5 0.2 0.2 30,959 30,514 29,333 29,636 (X) (X) 4.5

 Consumer nondurable goods................ 172,285 171,805 171,477 0.3 0.2 0.4 172,471 171,772 170,036 162,289 (X) (X) 6.3

NEW ORDERS 

UNFILLED ORDERS 

TOTAL INVENTORIES 

X

 Not Applicable 

p

 Preliminary 

r Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments and new orders 

include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal variation, based on the results of 

the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 

2 Topical series are regroupings of the separate industry categories. 

3

 Nondefense capital goods industries include: small arms and ordnance; farm machinery and equipment; construction machinery; mining, oil, and gas field machinery; industrial machinery; vending, laundry, and other 

machinery; photographic equipment; metalworking machinery; turbines and generators; other power transmission equipment; pumps and compressors; material handling equipment; all other machinery; electronic computers; 

computer storage devices; other computer peripheral equipment; communications equipment; search and navigation equipment; electromedical, measuring, and control instruments; electrical equipment; other electrical 

equipment, appliances, and components; heavy duty trucks; aircraft; railroad rolling stock; ships and boats; office and institutional furniture; and medical equipment and supplies. 4

 Defense capital goods industries include: small arms and ordnance; communications equipment; aircraft; missiles, space vehicles, and parts; ships and boats; and search and navigation equipment. 5 Estimates and percent changes exclude semiconductor industry data. 

6

 Based on year-to-date for shipments and new orders, but on same month prior year for unfilled orders and inventories. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and 

nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data limitations see 

<http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 
Table 6. Value of Manufacturers' Inventories, by Stage of Fabrication, by Industry Group1 

[Estimates are shown in millions of dollars and are based on data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Seasonally Adjusted Not Seasonally Adjusted

Monthly Percent Change Monthly % Change

Industry August

Aug. July June July - June - May - Aug. July June Aug. 2018/

2018p 2018r 2018 Aug. July June 2018p 2018r 2018 2017 2017

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

 All manufacturing industries....................... 233,226 232,388 230,394 0.4 0.9 1.0 234,169 234,055 229,287 219,333 6.8

 Durable goods industries.......................... 141,039 140,596 139,681 0.3 0.7 1.2 142,493 141,964 138,994 132,968 7.2

 Wood products................................... 5,081 5,068 5,088 0.3 -0.4 0.5 5,110 4,996 4,881 4,857 5.2

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 5,935 5,946 5,929 -0.2 0.3 0.5 5,937 5,955 5,955 5,508 7.8

 Primary metals.................................... 12,908 12,828 12,623 0.6 1.6 1.2 13,092 12,897 12,488 12,139 7.9

 Fabricated metal products........................ 20,327 20,343 19,978 -0.1 1.8 2.2 20,525 20,632 19,953 18,525 10.8

 Machinery.......................................... 27,010 26,851 26,785 0.6 0.2 0.8 27,391 27,176 26,820 25,078 9.2

 Computers and electronic products........ 18,795 18,667 18,527 0.7 0.8 0.5 18,907 18,880 18,475 17,133 10.4

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 8,005 7,936 7,837 0.9 1.3 1.7 8,089 8,058 7,880 7,260 11.4

 Transportation equipment..................... 31,160 31,220 31,291 -0.2 -0.2 1.9 31,442 31,522 30,892 30,888 1.8

 Furniture and related products............... 3,878 3,898 3,854 -0.5 1.1 1.1 3,914 3,939 3,896 3,815 2.6

 Miscellaneous products......................... 7,940 7,839 7,769 1.3 0.9 -0.1 8,086 7,909 7,754 7,765 4.1

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 92,187 91,792 90,713 0.4 1.2 0.6 91,676 92,091 90,293 86,365 6.1

 Food products.................................... 17,788 17,915 17,918 -0.7 0.0 -0.3 17,545 17,773 17,629 18,381 -4.5

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 5,823 5,786 5,798 0.6 -0.2 -2.2 5,592 5,546 5,621 5,553 0.7

 Textiles.............................................. 1,152 1,153 1,130 -0.1 2.0 0.3 1,166 1,163 1,138 1,091 6.9

 Textile products................................... 1,315 1,319 1,313 -0.3 0.5 0.0 1,319 1,320 1,318 1,298 1.6

 Apparel............................................. 501 497 496 0.8 0.2 1.8 511 511 496 487 4.9

 Leather and allied products.................... 265 265 265 0.0 0.0 3.1 272 274 268 241 12.9

 Paper products.................................... 8,230 8,206 8,137 0.3 0.8 1.2 8,240 8,238 8,008 7,768 6.1

 Printing ............................................. 2,793 2,792 2,760 0.0 1.2 -0.9 2,823 2,815 2,742 2,727 3.5

 Petroleum and coal products................. 12,381 12,232 11,782 1.2 3.8 -0.6 12,097 12,402 12,011 9,452 28.0

 Chemical products................................ 30,665 30,409 30,025 0.8 1.3 1.8 30,765 30,767 30,033 28,881 6.5

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 11,274 11,218 11,089 0.5 1.2 1.1 11,346 11,282 11,029 10,486 8.2

WORK IN PROCESS

 All manufacturing industries....................... 207,181 208,787 204,760 -0.8 2.0 -0.6 207,822 210,116 202,781 196,281 5.9

 Durable goods industries.......................... 151,516 153,266 149,126 -1.1 2.8 -1.3 152,378 154,671 147,993 145,582 4.7

 Wood products................................... 2,292 2,284 2,264 0.4 0.9 1.0 2,247 2,242 2,250 1,936 16.1

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 1,552 1,540 1,524 0.8 1.0 1.3 1,546 1,551 1,548 1,530 1.0

 Primary metals.................................... 10,662 10,669 10,686 -0.1 -0.2 2.9 10,896 10,907 10,775 9,522 14.4

 Fabricated metal products........................ 13,763 13,769 13,878 0.0 -0.8 0.2 13,884 13,903 13,841 12,946 7.2

 Machinery.......................................... 19,090 19,004 19,050 0.5 -0.2 0.9 19,530 19,094 18,687 18,405 6.1

 Computers and electronic products........ 12,692 12,778 12,923 -0.7 -1.1 -0.4 12,862 12,994 13,034 13,504 -4.8

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 3,984 3,989 3,948 -0.1 1.0 1.4 4,056 4,081 4,007 3,726 8.9

 Transportation equipment..................... 82,298 84,094 79,714 -2.1 5.5 -3.1 82,106 84,729 78,736 79,182 3.7

 Furniture and related products............... 1,419 1,386 1,422 2.4 -2.5 -1.1 1,432 1,401 1,438 1,297 10.4

 Miscellaneous products......................... 3,764 3,753 3,717 0.3 1.0 -0.2 3,819 3,769 3,677 3,534 8.1

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 55,665 55,521 55,634 0.3 -0.2 1.3 55,444 55,445 54,788 50,699 9.4

 Food products.................................... 6,114 6,164 6,445 -0.8 -4.4 2.9 5,509 5,642 5,820 5,322 3.5

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 9,449 9,465 9,431 -0.2 0.4 0.5 8,823 8,838 8,885 8,512 3.7

 Textiles.............................................. 706 707 701 -0.1 0.9 -0.7 708 714 699 694 2.0

 Textile products................................... 432 411 406 5.1 1.2 -1.5 433 409 402 410 5.6

 Apparel............................................. 333 336 336 -0.9 0.0 1.5 358 360 347 319 12.2

 Leather and allied products.................... 81 79 76 2.5 3.9 1.3 85 78 74 82 3.7

 Paper products.................................... 1,301 1,298 1,282 0.2 1.2 0.6 1,324 1,320 1,289 1,261 5.0

 Printing ............................................. 1,100 1,102 1,106 -0.2 -0.4 -0.3 1,189 1,111 1,065 1,167 1.9

 Petroleum and coal products................. 13,610 13,425 13,488 1.4 -0.5 2.9 13,979 13,840 13,431 10,935 27.8

 Chemical products................................ 19,346 19,378 19,226 -0.2 0.8 0.2 19,858 19,988 19,639 19,085 4.1

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 3,193 3,156 3,137 1.2 0.6 1.6 3,178 3,145 3,137 2,912 9.1

FINISHED GOODS

 All manufacturing industries....................... 235,203 234,979 235,060 0.1 0.0 0.3 237,334 236,190 233,518 231,041 2.7

 Durable goods industries.......................... 114,646 114,697 114,633 0.0 0.1 0.3 115,551 115,608 113,592 113,682 1.6

 Wood products................................... 4,896 4,891 4,836 0.1 1.1 0.9 4,792 4,849 4,834 4,821 -0.6

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 7,027 7,013 6,938 0.2 1.1 1.4 6,943 7,069 7,043 6,667 4.1

 Primary metals.................................... 12,004 12,057 11,955 -0.4 0.9 0.5 11,928 12,183 11,852 11,034 8.1

 Fabricated metal products........................ 19,482 19,308 19,179 0.9 0.7 0.7 19,422 19,530 19,259 18,208 6.7

 Machinery.......................................... 22,656 22,566 22,509 0.4 0.3 -0.1 22,703 22,465 22,248 23,152 -1.9

 Computers and electronic products........ 11,478 11,691 11,921 -1.8 -1.9 0.1 11,954 11,896 11,680 12,502 -4.4

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 6,909 6,910 6,931 0.0 -0.3 -0.1 7,093 7,075 6,965 7,042 0.7

 Transportation equipment..................... 15,944 15,862 15,915 0.5 -0.3 0.9 16,244 16,070 15,338 15,499 4.8

 Furniture and related products............... 2,594 2,607 2,611 -0.5 -0.2 -1.8 2,684 2,736 2,758 2,682 0.1

 Miscellaneous products......................... 11,656 11,792 11,838 -1.2 -0.4 -0.4 11,788 11,735 11,615 12,075 -2.4

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 120,557 120,282 120,427 0.2 -0.1 0.3 121,783 120,582 119,926 117,359 3.8

 Food products.................................... 30,105 30,011 30,092 0.3 -0.3 -1.2 31,430 30,067 29,604 31,016 1.3

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 9,205 9,226 9,293 -0.2 -0.7 -0.6 9,285 9,267 9,355 9,213 0.8

 Textiles.............................................. 1,393 1,382 1,381 0.8 0.1 0.7 1,393 1,387 1,391 1,353 3.0

 Textile products................................... 1,749 1,743 1,700 0.3 2.5 0.6 1,754 1,734 1,694 1,665 5.3

 Apparel............................................. 1,083 1,086 1,066 -0.3 1.9 2.9 1,157 1,153 1,053 1,150 0.6

 Leather and allied products.................... 433 436 440 -0.7 -0.9 -1.8 448 452 455 470 -4.7

 Paper products.................................... 6,583 6,584 6,576 0.0 0.1 -0.2 6,588 6,644 6,574 6,700 -1.7

 Printing ............................................. 1,517 1,533 1,576 -1.0 -2.7 0.1 1,517 1,521 1,599 1,621 -6.4

 Petroleum and coal products................. 16,744 16,608 16,308 0.8 1.8 1.3 16,774 16,801 16,238 14,414 16.4

 Chemical products................................ 39,478 39,442 39,753 0.1 -0.8 1.0 39,299 39,408 39,698 37,907 3.7

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 12,267 12,231 12,242 0.3 -0.1 1.2 12,138 12,148 12,265 11,850 2.4

p

 Preliminary 

r Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments and new 

orders include adjusted data for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal variation, based on the 

results of the latest annual review of the model parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and 

nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data limitations see 

<http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>.
Table 7. Ratios of Manufacturers' Inventories to Shipments and Unfilled Orders 

 to Shipments, by Industry Group 1

[Based on Seasonally Adjusted data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Inventory/Shipments ratio Unfilled Orders/Shipments ratio2

Industry Aug Jul Jun May Aug Jul Jun May

2018p 2018r 2018 2018 2018p 2018r 2018 2018

All manufacturing industries3............................ 1.34 1.35 1.34 1.35 (X) (X) (X) (X)

Durable goods industries3

.................................. 1.61 1.63 1.60 1.63 6.68 6.72 6.64 6.67

 Wood products.............................................. 1.29 1.29 1.29 1.29 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Nonmetallic mineral products......................... 1.32 1.32 1.32 1.31 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Primary metals.............................................. 1.63 1.64 1.64 1.63 1.44 1.44 1.44 1.43

 Fabricated metal products.............................. 1.63 1.62 1.61 1.60 2.65 2.63 2.62 2.62

 Machinery..................................................... 2.10 2.07 2.09 2.09 3.53 3.53 3.56 3.56

 Computers and electronic products3

................ 1.58 1.59 1.62 1.63 5.35 5.35 5.42 5.44

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components........................................ 1.65 1.66 1.66 1.65 1.90 1.92 1.91 1.89

 Transportation equipment.............................. 1.50 1.55 1.48 1.57 15.06 15.59 14.76 14.99

 Furniture and related products........................ 1.20 1.21 1.21 1.19 1.47 1.48 1.49 1.44

 Miscellaneous products.................................. 1.70 1.70 1.69 1.70 (X) (X) (X) (X)

Nondurable goods industries............................. 1.07 1.07 1.07 1.06 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Food products.............................................. 0.80 0.80 0.81 0.81 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Beverage and tobacco products...................... 1.89 1.93 1.95 1.99 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Textiles........................................................ 1.28 1.28 1.28 1.28 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Textile products............................................ 1.52 1.51 1.51 1.52 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Apparel......................................................... 1.98 2.00 1.94 1.93 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Leather and allied products............................. 1.84 1.85 1.85 1.88 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Paper products.............................................. 0.99 1.00 1.00 0.99 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Printing......................................................... 0.82 0.81 0.82 0.83 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Petroleum and coal products........................... 0.76 0.75 0.74 0.74 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Chemical products......................................... 1.37 1.37 1.36 1.36 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Plastics and rubber products........................... 1.35 1.34 1.34 1.32 (X) (X) (X) (X)

Aug3 Aug3 Aug3 Aug3

Industry 2017- 2017- 2017- 2017-

Aug2 Jul Aug2 Jul Aug2 Jul Aug2 Jul

2018 2018 2018 2018 2018 2018 2018 2018

 

All manufacturing industries.................. (X) 0.1 (X) 0.3 (X) 0.1 (X) 0.1

Durable goods industries....................... -0.1 0.2 -0.1 0.4 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1

 Wood products................................... (X) 0.2 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Nonmetallic mineral products.............. (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Primary metals.................................... -0.1 0.4 -0.1 0.7 -0.1 0.3 0.0 0.4

 Fabricated metal products.................... 0.0 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.2

 Machinery.......................................... -0.7 0.2 -0.9 0.8 -0.1 0.2 0.0 0.1

 Computers and electronic products..... 0.1 0.3 0.2 0.7 0.1 0.1 -0.1 0.1

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................. -0.3 0.3 -0.4 0.7 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.2

 Transportation equipment.................... 0.1 0.3 0.1 0.7 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1

 Furniture and related products............. (X) 0.4 (X) 0.8 (X) 0.6 (X) 0.4

 Miscellaneous products...................... (X) 0.2 (X) 0.2 (X) 0.2 (X) 0.1

Nondurable goods industries................... (X) 0.2 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Food products................................... (X) 0.2 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Beverage and tobacco products............ (X) 0.4 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Textiles............................................. (X) 0.4 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Textile products.................................. (X) 0.5 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Apparel.............................................. (X) 0.5 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.6

 Leather and allied products.................... (X) 0.5 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.4

 Paper products.................................... (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.1

 Printing.............................................. (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.3

 Petroleum and coal products................. (X) 0.6 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.9

 Chemical products................................ (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.1

 Plastics and rubber products................. (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

X

 Not Applicable 

p

 Preliminary 

r

 Revised data due to late receipts and concurrent seasonal adjustment. 

2

 Excludes the following industries with no unfilled orders: Wood products; nonmetallic mineral products; medical equipment and

supplies; office supplies; other miscellaneous manufacturing; cutlery and handtools; farm and garden machinery; computer storage and 

peripheral devices; audio and video equipment; manufacturing and reproducing magnetic and optical media; batteries; automobiles; light 

trucks and utility vehicles; heavy duty trucks; and miscellaneous furniture. 

3

 Unfilled orders to shipments ratio excludes semiconductor manufacturing. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major component of 

survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and nonreporting. Since the survey panel is not a 

probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey design, methodology, and data 

limitations see <http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 2018.

Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>. 

X Not Applicable 

NA Not Available 

1

 Estimates of shipments and new orders are for the duration of the period, while estimates of unfilled orders and total 

inventories are for the end of the period. Not seasonally adjusted estimates of shipments and new orders include adjusted data

for non-calendar reporters. Seasonally adjusted estimates include concurrent adjustments for holiday and trading-day 

differences, where appropriate, as well as seasonal variation, based on the results of the latest annual review of the model 

parameters. Estimates are not adjusted for price changes. 

2

 The current month revisions are the difference between the advance percent change and the percent change as shown in this 

publication. 

3

 The twelve month revisions are the differences between the month-to-month percent changes of the preliminary and final 

estimates. The monthly averages are the simple averages of the absolute values of the differences for the months specified. 

The advance to final percent change revisions for the durable goods industries are shown in the advance report for the month. 

Note: Estimates of manufacturers' shipments, inventories and orders are subject to survey error and revision. One major 

component of survey error is nonsampling error, which includes errors of coverage, response, and nonreporting. Since the 

survey panel is not a probability sample, estimates of sampling error cannot be calculated. For further details on survey 

design, methodology, and data limitations see <http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/>.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, August Full Report, October 4, 

2018. Information on data sources and methodology can be found on our website at 

<www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/how_the_data_are_collected/index.html>.

Table 8. Revisions to Previously Published Monthly Percent Changes 1

[Based on Seasonally Adjusted data from the Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Survey.] 

Shipments New Orders Unfilled Orders Inventories