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FOR RELEASE AT 10:00 AM EDT, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2017 

MONTHLY FULL REPORT ON MANUFACTURERS’ SHIPMENTS, INVENTORIES 

AND ORDERS SEPTEMBER 2017 

Release Number: CB 17-174 M3-2 (17)-09 

Notice: For information on the impact of recent hurricanes on the compilation of this report, please see the 

Frequently Asked Questions document on our website. 

November 3, 2017 — The U.S. Census Bureau announces the September full report on manufacturers’ 

shipments, inventories and orders: 

MANUFACTURED GOODS – NEW ORDERS

SEPTEMBER 2017 $478.5 billion            +1.4%°

AUGUST 2017  

(revised) $472.0 billion            +1.2%°

Next release: December 4, 2017

Data adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes. 

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

°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. 

Summary 

New orders for manufactured goods in September, up three of the last four months, increased $6.5 billion or 

1.4 percent to $478.5 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 1.2 percent August 

increase. Shipments, up nine of the last ten months, increased $3.9 billion or 0.8 percent to $480.4 billion. 

This followed a 0.6 percent August increase. Unfilled orders, up following two consecutive monthly 

decreases, increased $2.7 billion or 0.2 percent to $1,135.0 billion. This followed a virtually unchanged 

August decrease. The unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 6.70, down from 6.76 in August. Inventories, 

up ten of the last eleven months, increased $4.4 billion or 0.7 percent to $660.8 billion. This followed a 0.6 

percent August increase. The inventories-to-shipments ratio was 1.38, unchanged from August. 

New Orders 

New orders for manufactured durable goods in September, up three of the last four months, increased $4.7 

billion or 2.0 percent to $238.4 billion, down from the previously published 2.2 percent increase. This 

followed a 2.1 percent August increase. Transportation equipment, also up three of the last four months, led 

the increase, $3.6 billion or 4.7 percent to $80.9 billion. New orders for manufactured nondurable goods 

increased $1.8 billion or 0.8 percent to $240.1 billion.

Oct-16 Nov-16 Dec-16 Jan-17 Feb-17 Mar-17 Apr-17 May-17 Jun-17 Jul-17 Aug-17 Sep-17

% Change 3.4% -2.3% 1.8% 0.4% 0.8% 1.0% -0.3% -0.3% 3.2% -3.3% 1.2% 1.4%

-4.0%

-3.0%

-2.0%

-1.0%

0.0%

1.0%

2.0%

3.0%

4.0%

MANUFACTURERS' NEW ORDERS 2016-2017

Seasonally Adjusted, Month-To-Month Percentage Change

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

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Shipments 

Shipments of manufactured durable goods in September, up four of the last five months, increased $2.1 

billion or 0.9 percent to $240.3 billion, down from the previously published 1.0 percent increase. This 

followed a 0.7 percent August increase. Transportation equipment, up two of the last three months, led the 

increase, $0.8 billion or 1.1 percent to $79.5 billion. Shipments of manufactured nondurable goods, up five 

of the last six months, increased $1.8 billion or 0.8 percent to $240.1 billion. This followed a 0.4 percent 

August increase. Petroleum and coal products, up three consecutive months, drove the increase, $2.1 billion 

or 5.0 percent to $44.9 billion. 

Unfilled Orders 

Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in September, up following two consecutive monthly 

decreases, increased $2.7 billion or 0.2 percent to $1,135.0 billion, unchanged from the previously published 

increase. This followed a virtually unchanged August decrease. Transportation equipment, also up 

following two consecutive monthly decreases, led the increase, $1.4 billion or 0.2 percent to $771.9 billion. 

Inventories

Inventories of manufactured durable goods in September, up fourteen of the last fifteen months, increased 

$2.6 billion or 0.6 percent to $403.9 billion, unchanged from the previously published increase. This 

followed a 0.5 percent August increase. Transportation equipment, up three consecutive months, led the 

increase, $1.0 billion or 0.7 percent to $131.0 billion. Inventories of manufactured nondurable goods, up 

four consecutive months, increased $1.8 billion or 0.7 percent to $256.8 billion. This followed a 0.7 percent 

August increase. Petroleum and coal products, up three consecutive months, led the increase, $1.8 billion or 

5.0 percent to $38.6 billion. By stage of fabrication, September materials and supplies increased 0.8 percent 

in durable goods and increased 1.9 percent in nondurable goods. Work in process increased 0.8 percent in 

durable goods and increased 1.0 percent in nondurable goods. Finished goods increased 0.2 percent in 

durable goods and decreased 0.4 percent in nondurable goods. 

The Advance Report on durable goods for October is scheduled for release on November 22, 2017 at 8:30 

a.m. EST and the Full Report on December 4, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. EST. 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>.
Data Inquiries Media Inquiries

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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. 

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 may 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>. 
Data Inquiries Media Inquiries

Economic Indicators Division, Shipments, Inventories, and Orders Branch (M3) Public Information Office

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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/>. 

2018 Release Dates for the M3 Survey 

Source: 

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/reports/pei_schedule_release_dates_2018_all_

v2.pdf

###

Survey month Advance Report 

(8:30 a.m. release time)

Full Report 

(10:00 a.m. release time)

Sep-17 Wed 10/25/2017 Fri 11/3/2017

Oct-17 Wed 11/22/2017 Mon 12/4/2017

Nov-17 Fri 12/22/2017 Fri 1/5/2018

Dec-17 Fri 1/26/2018 Fri 2/2/2018

Jan-18 Tue 2/27/2018 Tue 3/6/2018

Feb-18 Fri 3/23/2018 Wed 4/4/2018

Mar-18 Thu 4/26/2018 Thu 5/3/2018

Apr-18 Fri 5/25/2018 Mon 6/4/2018

May-18 Wed 6/27/2018 Tue 7/3/2018

Jun-18 Thu 7/26/2018 Thu 8/2/2018

Jul-18 Fri 8/24/2018 Thu 9/6/2018

Aug-18 Thu 9/27/2018 Thu 10/4/2018

Sep-18 Thu 10/25/2018 Fri 11/2/2018

Oct-18 Wed 11/21/2018 Thu 12/6/2018

Nov-18 Fri 12/21/2018 Not available at this time
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

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2017p 2016 2016

 All manufacturing industries.................. 480,390 476,452 473,756 0.8 0.6 0.2 495,631 499,958 450,898 476,622 4,268,359 4,078,102 4.7

 Excluding transportation................... 400,919 397,820 394,909 0.8 0.7 0.2 411,401 416,500 385,827 391,254 3,561,753 3,374,172 5.6

 Excluding defense.............................. 467,753 464,037 461,456 0.8 0.6 0.2 481,697 487,590 440,126 463,469 4,159,828 3,976,545 4.6

 With unfilled orders............................ 169,526 167,588 167,231 1.2 0.2 0.5 178,827 175,441 153,659 171,995 1,498,321 1,435,104 4.4

 Durable goods industries......................... 240,339 238,196 236,492 0.9 0.7 0.1 252,384 250,506 216,044 244,404 2,128,852 2,059,218 3.4

 Wood products....................................... 9,252 9,119 9,013 1.5 1.2 -0.4 9,535 9,772 9,186 8,971 83,577 77,287 8.1

 Nonmetallic mineral products.................... 10,668 10,556 10,522 1.1 0.3 -0.5 11,263 11,943 10,767 11,095 95,953 93,954 2.1

 Primary metals....................................... 19,613 19,655 19,341 -0.2 1.6 0.3 19,745 20,958 18,478 18,042 176,442 159,984 10.3

 Iron and steel mills............................ 9,253 9,249 9,216 0.0 0.4 0.5 9,259 9,936 8,876 8,225 82,945 74,677 11.1

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals.......... 9,079 9,118 8,846 -0.4 3.1 0.4 9,111 9,625 8,418 8,408 81,622 72,892 12.0

 Ferrous metal foundries....................... 1,281 1,288 1,279 -0.5 0.7 -1.2 1,375 1,397 1,184 1,409 11,875 12,415 -4.3

 Fabricated metal products....................... 32,402 32,182 31,796 0.7 1.2 -0.4 33,581 34,742 30,646 31,326 287,478 268,231 7.2

 Machinery............................................. 32,110 31,599 31,032 1.6 1.8 -0.1 32,811 31,886 29,045 30,685 280,646 270,219 3.9

 Farm machinery................................. 2,769 2,821 2,689 -1.8 4.9 -0.3 2,587 2,600 2,561 2,257 24,960 23,130 7.9

 Construction machinery..................... 2,052 2,103 2,073 -2.4 1.4 3.1 2,026 2,072 1,919 1,849 18,253 17,664 3.3

 Mining, oil field, and 

 gas field machinery.......................... 1,177 1,006 1,043 17.0 -3.5 2.6 1,229 1,008 994 1,158 8,937 9,564 -6.6

 Industrial machinery.......................... 2,874 2,961 2,909 -2.9 1.8 2.5 3,232 2,787 2,727 3,028 25,509 24,674 3.4

 Photographic equipment...................... 537 525 544 2.3 -3.5 -5.4 588 523 481 605 4,877 4,966 -1.8

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............ 3,663 3,676 3,702 -0.4 -0.7 -1.1 3,780 3,993 3,885 3,893 34,442 33,722 2.1

 Metalworking machinery..................... 3,162 3,070 3,012 3.0 1.9 -2.2 3,384 3,152 2,685 3,138 26,657 24,525 8.7

 Turbines, generators, and other

 power transmission equipment....... 4,489 4,127 3,999 8.8 3.2 2.0 4,434 4,222 3,793 3,608 35,999 33,826 6.4

 Material handling equipment............... 2,867 2,848 2,714 0.7 4.9 -3.4 2,901 3,054 2,522 2,725 24,988 23,557 6.1

 Computers and electronic products2

.......... 27,436 27,174 26,901 1.0 1.0 1.1 30,543 27,368 25,262 28,678 237,749 227,080 4.7

 Computers........................................ 695 720 708 -3.5 1.7 0.4 796 699 698 825 6,479 6,428 0.8

 Computer storage devices..................... 655 669 760 -2.1 -12.0 11.1 997 532 493 863 6,039 5,885 2.6

 Other peripheral equipment................ 579 646 620 -10.4 4.2 14.0 671 599 559 678 5,021 5,283 -5.0

 Nondefense communications

 equipment.................................... 2,791 2,716 2,697 2.8 0.7 -1.3 3,515 2,544 2,373 3,364 24,382 23,593 3.3

 Defense communications equipment.... 246 245 250 0.4 -2.0 5.5 274 255 224 296 2,147 2,253 -4.7

 Audio and video equipment.................... 360 347 331 3.7 4.8 3.1 347 330 283 268 2,718 2,484 9.4

 Electronic components......................... 4,083 4,078 3,950 0.1 3.2 -0.7 4,324 4,487 4,025 4,159 36,316 34,537 5.2

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 1,450 1,443 1,454 0.5 -0.8 1.5 1,611 1,488 1,267 1,537 12,870 11,894 8.2

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment..................................... 2,641 2,614 2,598 1.0 0.6 0.8 2,808 2,656 2,437 2,640 23,017 21,673 6.2

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments................. 9,166 9,078 9,039 1.0 0.4 5.2 10,639 8,937 8,310 9,774 78,262 75,112 4.2

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components................................... 10,138 10,045 9,993 0.9 0.5 -1.6 10,734 10,614 9,478 10,626 90,528 89,018 1.7

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,059 1,055 1,055 0.4 0.0 -4.1 1,087 1,106 1,046 1,105 9,576 9,633 -0.6

 Household appliances........................ 1,580 1,544 1,529 2.3 1.0 -1.9 1,699 1,603 1,388 1,785 13,945 14,830 -6.0

 Electrical equipment............................ 2,652 2,676 2,601 -0.9 2.9 -5.1 2,862 2,778 2,340 3,108 24,650 26,055 -5.4

 Batteries........................................... 925 927 922 -0.2 0.5 5.4 964 1,016 801 951 7,874 7,996 -1.5

 Transportation equipment........................ 79,471 78,632 78,847 1.1 -0.3 0.1 84,230 83,458 65,071 85,368 706,606 703,930 0.4

 Automobiles..................................... 8,133 8,235 7,786 -1.2 5.8 -0.8 8,445 9,082 5,823 9,454 72,899 84,868 -14.1

 Light trucks and utility vehicles.............. 16,046 16,011 15,671 0.2 2.2 -3.6 16,917 17,670 12,015 16,933 144,567 138,273 4.6

 Heavy duty trucks ............................. 2,624 2,654 2,581 -1.1 2.8 4.0 2,729 2,811 2,516 2,312 22,182 21,434 3.5

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers.................................... 27,617 27,693 27,159 -0.3 2.0 -1.4 28,115 29,958 22,846 28,447 249,600 240,954 3.6

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 12,471 11,481 12,999 8.6 -11.7 8.0 14,040 11,419 11,114 14,212 104,973 109,091 -3.8

 Defense aircraft and parts.................. 3,981 4,054 4,065 -1.8 -0.3 -1.0 4,572 4,033 3,317 4,577 34,994 34,483 1.5

 Ships and boats................................. 2,985 3,003 3,086 -0.6 -2.7 2.2 3,119 2,925 2,874 3,362 27,399 27,439 -0.1

 Furniture and related products.................. 6,519 6,588 6,510 -1.0 1.2 1.0 6,622 7,228 6,476 6,568 58,588 57,570 1.8

 Miscellaneous durable goods................. 12,730 12,646 12,537 0.7 0.9 0.5 13,320 12,537 11,635 13,045 111,285 111,945 -0.6

 Nondurable goods industries..................... 240,051 238,256 237,264 0.8 0.4 0.3 243,247 249,452 234,854 232,218 2,139,507 2,018,884 6.0

 Food products....................................... 68,838 68,885 69,242 -0.1 -0.5 0.0 70,442 70,599 66,372 66,780 608,665 577,904 5.3

 Grain and oilseed milling....................... 7,604 7,629 7,576 -0.3 0.7 -0.6 7,549 8,080 7,140 7,269 66,428 64,398 3.2

 Dairy products.................................. 9,515 9,605 9,815 -0.9 -2.1 -0.3 9,629 9,912 9,545 9,638 87,032 82,707 5.2

 Meat, poultry, and seafood products... 19,939 19,985 19,999 -0.2 -0.1 -1.9 20,166 20,432 19,852 18,699 177,080 166,573 6.3

 Beverage and tobacco products................ 12,696 13,128 13,207 -3.3 -0.6 -1.2 13,073 13,688 13,215 14,029 118,753 120,560 -1.5

 Beverages......................................... 8,992 9,158 9,315 -1.8 -1.7 -1.6 9,369 9,718 9,323 10,463 85,077 90,217 -5.7

 Tobacco............................................ 3,704 3,970 3,892 -6.7 2.0 -0.3 3,704 3,970 3,892 3,566 33,676 30,343 11.0

 Textile mills........................................... 2,629 2,654 2,643 -0.9 0.4 1.3 2,648 2,800 2,598 2,532 23,944 22,897 4.6

 Textile products................................... 2,216 2,189 2,206 1.2 -0.8 -0.7 2,198 2,295 2,250 2,117 20,113 19,719 2.0

 Apparel................................................ 1,029 1,037 1,064 -0.8 -2.5 0.8 1,077 1,163 1,086 1,065 9,119 8,722 4.6

 Leather and allied products...................... 380 378 385 0.5 -1.8 0.8 378 381 369 376 3,469 3,436 1.0

 Paper products...................................... 16,158 16,227 15,916 -0.4 2.0 0.5 16,281 17,071 15,724 15,700 142,795 139,801 2.1

 Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills....... 6,652 6,657 6,603 -0.1 0.8 0.6 6,698 6,980 6,638 6,610 59,466 59,173 0.5

 Paperboard containers........................ 5,397 5,501 5,360 -1.9 2.6 -0.6 5,422 5,871 5,261 5,397 48,847 47,284 3.3

 Printing................................................. 6,240 6,254 6,282 -0.2 -0.4 -0.1 6,461 6,525 5,839 7,130 56,654 61,098 -7.3

 Petroleum and coal products.................. 44,916 42,772 41,407 5.0 3.3 2.6 45,045 46,423 44,431 36,574 384,303 305,779 25.7

 Petroleum refineries.......................... 40,828 38,767 37,350 5.3 3.8 2.6 40,493 41,541 39,914 32,573 347,701 273,265 27.2

 Chemical products..................................... 65,062 64,938 65,043 0.2 -0.2 0.0 65,459 67,447 63,332 65,172 590,171 576,759 2.3

 Pesticides, fertilizers, and other

 agricultural chemicals....................... 2,753 2,722 2,799 1.1 -2.8 -2.8 2,436 2,388 2,299 3,000 27,198 32,277 -15.7

 Pharmaceuticals and medicines............. 22,809 22,590 22,262 1.0 1.5 1.0 23,140 23,464 21,378 21,039 198,196 184,307 7.5

 Paints, coatings, and adhesives.......... 3,810 3,832 3,853 -0.6 -0.5 1.4 3,763 4,201 3,911 3,690 35,053 33,339 5.1

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 19,887 19,794 19,869 0.5 -0.4 -0.9 20,185 21,060 19,638 20,743 181,521 182,209 -0.4

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2017p 2016 2016

All manufacturing industries2........................ 478,455 471,965 466,245 1.4 1.2 -3.3 490,942 486,891 443,570 466,021 4,232,630 4,008,341 5.6

 Excluding transportation2

...................... 397,595 394,737 392,449 0.7 0.6 0.5 406,531 409,459 382,800 385,424 3,538,073 3,344,016 5.8

 Excluding defense2

.............................. 465,345 459,243 452,584 1.3 1.5 -3.7 476,537 476,595 432,552 452,498 4,126,845 3,910,292 5.5

 With unfilled orders2............................. 172,190 167,549 164,050 2.8 2.1 -9.1 178,510 167,035 150,768 165,434 1,501,584 1,401,446 7.1

 Durable goods industries2

......................... 238,404 233,709 228,981 2.0 2.1 -6.8 247,695 237,439 208,716 233,803 2,093,123 1,989,457 5.2

 Primary metals........................................ 19,631 19,886 19,635 -1.3 1.3 0.8 18,975 20,732 18,870 17,382 177,135 159,867 10.8

 Iron and steel mills.............................. 9,293 9,532 9,516 -2.5 0.2 1.0 8,676 9,950 9,122 7,718 83,573 75,185 11.2

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals.......... 9,003 8,992 8,777 0.1 2.4 1.0 8,960 9,371 8,475 8,237 81,404 71,989 13.1

 Ferrous metal foundries....................... 1,335 1,362 1,342 -2.0 1.5 -2.1 1,339 1,411 1,273 1,427 12,158 12,693 -4.2

 Fabricated metal products........................ 33,311 32,760 32,620 1.7 0.4 0.7 33,841 34,395 31,578 29,965 294,242 269,278 9.3

 Machinery............................................. 31,886 31,856 31,854 0.1 0.0 0.2 31,699 31,979 29,885 29,832 284,790 267,680 6.4

 Construction machinery........................ 2,298 2,282 2,294 0.7 -0.5 12.9 2,187 2,175 1,972 1,545 18,996 15,663 21.3

 Mining, oil field, and

 gas field machinery.......................... 1,180 1,002 1,083 17.8 -7.5 3.7 1,242 1,060 1,076 1,080 9,064 7,713 17.5

 Industrial machinery............................ 2,832 3,087 2,776 -8.3 11.2 -0.7 3,046 2,845 2,649 2,754 25,702 23,646 8.7

 Photographic equipment....................... 538 482 487 11.6 -1.0 -10.3 602 513 445 642 4,673 4,934 -5.3

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............... 3,629 3,702 3,702 -2.0 0.0 -3.0 3,708 3,904 3,825 3,826 34,941 33,689 3.7

 Metalworking machinery....................... 2,930 3,030 3,212 -3.3 -5.7 4.9 3,020 3,148 2,938 3,043 26,517 25,332 4.7

 Turbines, generators, and other 

 power transmission equipment........... 4,194 4,048 4,040 3.6 0.2 -0.6 3,961 4,097 3,948 3,595 35,800 34,212 4.6

 Material handling equipment.................. 2,921 2,944 3,142 -0.8 -6.3 1.0 2,985 3,016 2,695 2,877 26,518 23,996 10.5

 Computers and electronic products2

........... 23,459 23,014 22,550 1.9 2.1 2.4 27,525 21,545 20,718 25,513 201,205 195,325 3.0

 Computers........................................ 729 750 749 -2.8 0.1 0.1 830 729 739 816 6,710 6,416 4.6

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 3,160 3,008 2,787 5.1 7.9 -0.3 4,014 2,475 2,426 3,636 26,186 25,380 3.2

 Defense communications equipment....... 244 256 251 -4.7 2.0 -2.0 285 254 214 298 2,247 2,282 -1.5

 Electronic components......................... 4,137 4,158 3,993 -0.5 4.1 1.3 4,275 4,578 4,165 4,115 36,742 34,721 5.8

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 1,608 1,615 1,525 -0.4 5.9 1.5 1,886 1,513 1,437 1,590 13,778 12,584 9.5

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 2,575 2,485 2,521 3.6 -1.4 3.2 3,004 2,232 2,100 2,856 22,030 22,597 -2.5

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments..................... 9,241 8,910 8,849 3.7 0.7 2.6 11,027 8,123 8,146 10,159 78,228 75,858 3.1

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components................................... 10,158 10,084 9,885 0.7 2.0 1.9 10,622 10,490 8,911 10,778 90,880 91,017 -0.2

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,066 1,078 1,075 -1.1 0.3 -3.9 1,099 1,082 1,030 1,169 9,742 9,698 0.5

 Household appliances.......................... 1,586 1,604 1,534 -1.1 4.6 -2.0 1,730 1,655 1,350 1,823 14,048 14,853 -5.4

 Electrical equipment............................ 2,647 2,712 2,490 -2.4 8.9 4.1 2,728 2,775 2,243 3,061 24,519 26,315 -6.8

 Transportation equipment........................ 80,860 77,228 73,796 4.7 4.7 -19.6 84,411 77,432 60,770 80,597 694,557 664,325 4.6

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers..................................... 27,774 27,751 27,066 0.1 2.5 -2.2 28,334 30,107 22,697 28,344 250,547 239,591 4.6

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 12,684 9,699 7,267 30.8 33.5 -71.1 13,305 7,002 7,103 9,705 95,337 76,305 24.9

 Defense aircraft and parts.................... 3,850 3,756 5,429 2.5 -30.8 45.7 3,500 2,823 4,355 2,903 35,694 34,913 2.2

 Ships and boats.................................. 4,339 3,258 3,015 33.2 8.1 -2.1 4,627 2,476 2,169 3,069 26,336 21,982 19.8

 Furniture and related products................... 6,475 6,546 6,555 -1.1 -0.1 1.3 6,530 6,600 6,382 6,655 59,463 58,763 1.2

 Nondurable goods industries..................... 240,051 238,256 237,264 0.8 0.4 0.3 243,247 249,452 234,854 232,218 2,139,507 2,018,884 6.0

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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 September

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2016

All manufacturing industries2...................... 1,134,990 1,132,326 1,132,365 0.2 0.0 -0.3 1,126,005 1,126,322 1,134,728 1,110,279 1.4

 Excluding transportation2...................... 363,064 361,789 360,424 0.4 0.4 0.5 359,975 360,473 362,853 344,759 4.4

 Excluding defense2

............................. 956,198 954,007 954,353 0.2 0.0 -0.5 948,863 949,651 955,985 937,523 1.2

 Durable goods industries2........................ 1,134,990 1,132,326 1,132,365 0.2 0.0 -0.3 1,126,005 1,126,322 1,134,728 1,110,279 1.4

 Primary metals........................................ 30,612 30,594 30,363 0.1 0.8 1.0 29,635 30,405 30,631 27,462 7.9

 Iron and steel mills............................... 15,421 15,381 15,098 0.3 1.9 2.0 14,825 15,408 15,394 13,218 12.2

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals............. 10,825 10,901 11,027 -0.7 -1.1 -0.6 10,566 10,717 10,971 10,572 -0.1

 Ferrous metal foundries........................ 4,366 4,312 4,238 1.3 1.7 1.5 4,244 4,280 4,266 3,672 15.6

 Fabricated metal products......................... 80,261 79,352 78,774 1.1 0.7 1.1 80,023 79,763 80,110 74,939 6.8

 Machinery.............................................. 100,826 101,050 100,793 -0.2 0.3 0.8 99,793 100,905 100,812 96,386 3.5

 Construction machinery......................... 5,923 5,677 5,498 4.3 3.3 4.2 5,497 5,336 5,233 4,254 29.2

 Mining, oil field, and

 gas field machinery.......................... 5,193 5,190 5,194 0.1 -0.1 0.8 5,234 5,221 5,169 5,318 -1.6

 Industrial machinery............................. 8,186 8,228 8,102 -0.5 1.6 -1.6 8,062 8,248 8,190 8,464 -4.7

 Photographic equipment........................ 1,208 1,207 1,250 0.1 -3.4 -4.4 1,187 1,173 1,183 1,268 -6.4

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment................ 6,085 6,119 6,093 -0.6 0.4 0.0 5,977 6,049 6,138 5,574 7.2

 Metalworking machinery........................ 7,910 8,142 8,182 -2.8 -0.5 2.5 7,869 8,233 8,237 8,256 -4.7

 Turbines, generators, and other 

 power transmission equipment............ 29,428 29,723 29,802 -1.0 -0.3 0.1 29,378 29,851 29,976 29,811 -1.5

 Material handling equipment................... 12,766 12,712 12,616 0.4 0.8 3.5 12,709 12,625 12,663 10,958 16.0

 Computers and electronic products2............. 118,617 117,995 117,707 0.5 0.2 0.0 118,356 117,002 118,164 115,177 2.8

 Computers......................................... 1,920 1,886 1,856 1.8 1.6 2.3 1,920 1,886 1,856 1,667 15.2

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 26,175 25,806 25,514 1.4 1.1 0.4 26,020 25,521 25,590 23,668 9.9

 Defense communications equipment........ 1,620 1,622 1,611 -0.1 0.7 0.1 1,657 1,646 1,647 1,633 1.5

 Electronic components.......................... 11,565 11,511 11,431 0.5 0.7 0.4 11,491 11,540 11,449 11,049 4.0

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 18,801 18,643 18,471 0.8 0.9 0.4 18,868 18,593 18,568 17,824 5.9

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 26,930 26,996 27,125 -0.2 -0.5 -0.3 26,916 26,720 27,144 28,293 -4.9

 Electromedical, measuring,

 and control instruments...................... 31,606 31,531 31,699 0.2 -0.5 -0.6 31,484 31,096 31,910 31,043 1.4

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components.................................... 22,370 22,350 22,311 0.1 0.2 -0.5 21,989 22,101 22,225 20,841 5.5

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 1,608 1,601 1,578 0.4 1.5 1.3 1,597 1,585 1,609 1,521 5.0

 Household appliances........................... 1,176 1,170 1,110 0.5 5.4 0.5 1,162 1,131 1,079 1,008 15.3

 Electrical equipment............................. 8,153 8,158 8,122 -0.1 0.4 -1.3 8,020 8,154 8,157 8,096 -0.9

 Transportation equipment......................... 771,926 770,537 771,941 0.2 -0.2 -0.7 766,030 765,849 771,875 765,520 0.1

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers...................................... 23,992 23,835 23,777 0.7 0.2 -0.4 23,847 23,628 23,479 22,948 3.9

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 578,095 577,882 579,664 0.0 -0.3 -1.0 574,143 574,878 579,295 577,507 -0.6

 Defense aircraft and parts..................... 73,589 73,720 74,018 -0.2 -0.4 1.9 72,100 73,172 74,382 67,514 6.8

 Ships and boats.................................. 25,055 23,701 23,446 5.7 1.1 -0.3 24,568 23,060 23,509 21,734 13.0

 Furniture and related products................... 9,640 9,684 9,726 -0.5 -0.4 0.5 9,441 9,533 10,161 9,238 2.2

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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 September

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2016

 All manufacturing industries...................... 660,752 656,323 652,659 0.7 0.6 0.4 660,371 660,704 656,270 636,647 3.7

 Excluding transportation........................ 529,757 526,291 522,853 0.7 0.7 0.3 529,670 530,320 526,114 506,432 4.6

 Excluding defense............................. 633,193 628,639 625,169 0.7 0.6 0.3 632,836 633,016 628,638 610,583 3.6

 With unfilled orders............................. 328,284 326,145 324,483 0.7 0.5 0.4 327,653 329,123 326,870 317,223 3.3

 Durable goods industries........................ 403,920 401,323 399,312 0.6 0.5 0.5 402,720 404,696 401,877 388,903 3.6

 Wood products........................................ 11,783 11,774 11,782 0.1 -0.1 0.4 11,666 11,668 11,617 11,073 5.4

 Nonmetallic mineral products..................... 13,507 13,450 13,356 0.4 0.7 0.9 13,299 13,390 13,426 12,888 3.2

 Primary metals......................................... 33,720 33,499 33,304 0.7 0.6 0.7 33,879 33,715 33,626 31,218 8.5

 Iron and steel mills............................... 18,871 18,829 18,807 0.2 0.1 0.6 19,125 18,978 19,009 17,693 8.1

 Aluminum and nonferrous metals............ 12,835 12,662 12,503 1.4 1.3 0.7 12,794 12,724 12,620 11,661 9.7

 Ferrous metal foundries........................ 2,014 2,008 1,994 0.3 0.7 1.7 1,960 2,013 1,997 1,864 5.2

 Fabricated metal products......................... 50,406 50,065 49,745 0.7 0.6 0.8 50,258 50,227 50,225 47,730 5.3

 Machinery.............................................. 69,724 69,165 68,500 0.8 1.0 0.1 69,642 70,087 68,854 65,792 5.9

 Farm machinery.................................. 3,898 3,770 3,704 3.4 1.8 1.0 3,623 3,563 3,559 3,089 17.3

 Construction machinery......................... 5,359 5,251 5,238 2.1 0.2 0.2 5,427 5,241 5,207 5,475 -0.9

 Mining, oil field, 

 and gas field machinery.................... 7,690 7,709 7,773 -0.2 -0.8 0.3 7,661 7,853 7,770 7,630 0.4

 Industrial machinery............................. 7,937 7,842 7,772 1.2 0.9 -0.5 8,006 7,928 7,680 7,338 9.1

 Photographic equipment....................... 1,382 1,413 1,386 -2.2 1.9 1.0 1,382 1,461 1,407 1,380 0.1

 Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning,

 and refrigeration equipment............... 5,202 5,204 5,120 0.0 1.6 0.9 5,053 5,210 5,170 4,635 9.0

 Metalworking machinery........................ 5,855 5,842 5,810 0.2 0.6 0.7 5,923 5,948 5,840 5,717 3.6

 Turbines, generators, and other

 power transmission equipment............ 10,105 10,047 9,906 0.6 1.4 -1.7 10,171 10,403 10,152 9,128 11.4

 Material handling equipment.................. 5,256 5,193 5,116 1.2 1.5 2.5 5,424 5,404 5,255 4,799 13.0

 Computers and electronic products2

............ 45,146 44,876 44,636 0.6 0.5 0.3 44,655 45,889 45,206 43,020 3.8

 Computers......................................... 1,756 1,711 1,684 2.6 1.6 -2.0 1,813 1,805 1,780 1,684 7.7

 Computer storage devices.................... 1,424 1,475 1,508 -3.5 -2.2 2.0 1,384 1,554 1,535 1,375 0.7

 Other peripheral equipment................... 1,213 1,176 1,163 3.1 1.1 1.0 1,161 1,212 1,170 1,091 6.4

 Nondefense communications

 equipment...................................... 3,981 4,045 4,058 -1.6 -0.3 0.0 3,903 4,180 4,047 3,872 0.8

 Defense communications equipment........ 554 598 586 -7.4 2.0 1.4 554 598 586 544 1.8

 Audio and video equipment.................... 604 623 646 -3.0 -3.6 -2.0 663 663 649 630 5.2

 Electronic components.......................... 7,969 7,871 7,836 1.2 0.4 -0.2 7,847 7,912 7,980 7,355 6.7

 Nondefense search and navigation

 equipment...................................... 3,153 3,134 3,124 0.6 0.3 0.3 3,158 3,188 3,164 3,076 2.7

 Defense search and navigation

 equipment....................................... 3,133 3,111 3,096 0.7 0.5 0.5 3,045 3,157 3,157 3,024 0.7

 Electromedical, measuring 

 and control instruments...................... 14,627 14,506 14,494 0.8 0.1 0.2 14,439 14,943 14,705 14,384 0.4

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components.................................... 17,795 17,725 17,640 0.4 0.5 0.0 17,613 18,065 17,948 16,899 4.2

 Electric lighting equipment..................... 2,188 2,179 2,156 0.4 1.1 0.0 2,191 2,201 2,212 2,070 5.8

 Household appliances........................... 2,436 2,435 2,428 0.0 0.3 0.7 2,453 2,541 2,492 2,384 2.9

 Electrical equipment............................. 4,914 4,868 4,867 0.9 0.0 0.5 4,662 4,949 4,936 4,647 0.3

 Batteries............................................ 1,782 1,755 1,755 1.5 0.0 -1.5 1,848 1,844 1,842 1,836 0.7

 Transportation equipment......................... 130,995 130,032 129,806 0.7 0.2 0.6 130,701 130,384 130,156 130,215 0.4

 Automobiles....................................... 4,503 4,462 4,413 0.9 1.1 -1.1 4,525 4,559 4,537 4,455 1.6

 Light trucks and utility vehicles.............. 3,841 3,744 3,795 2.6 -1.3 3.5 3,930 3,825 3,950 3,927 0.1

 Heavy duty trucks ............................... 2,138 2,134 2,138 0.2 -0.2 0.1 2,041 2,117 2,135 1,719 18.7

 Motor vehicle bodies, parts, 

 and trailers...................................... 24,670 24,411 24,427 1.1 -0.1 1.4 24,597 24,592 24,657 24,792 -0.8

 Nondefense aircraft and parts................ 66,713 66,041 65,925 1.0 0.2 -0.5 66,342 65,862 65,589 67,611 -1.9

 Defense aircraft and parts..................... 13,224 13,428 13,143 -1.5 2.2 3.3 13,265 13,469 13,181 11,831 12.1

 Ships and boats.................................. 3,519 3,387 3,471 3.9 -2.4 4.6 3,565 3,335 3,456 3,351 6.4

 Furniture and related products.................... 7,816 7,769 7,710 0.6 0.8 0.1 7,803 7,946 7,907 7,314 6.7

 Miscellaneous durable goods..................... 23,028 22,968 22,833 0.3 0.6 0.1 23,204 23,325 22,912 22,754 2.0

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 256,832 255,000 253,347 0.7 0.7 0.3 257,651 256,008 254,393 247,744 4.0

 Food products........................................ 55,490 55,527 55,651 -0.1 -0.2 -0.6 56,305 56,042 55,170 55,607 1.3

 Grain and oilseed milling........................ 5,429 5,579 5,641 -2.7 -1.1 -0.5 5,217 5,352 5,401 5,259 -0.8

 Dairy products.................................... 8,311 8,281 8,292 0.4 -0.1 0.5 8,311 8,445 8,543 7,710 7.8

 Meat, poultry, and seafood products....... 9,307 9,313 9,304 -0.1 0.1 -1.1 9,266 9,456 9,387 9,037 2.5

 Beverage and tobacco products................ 23,302 23,380 23,485 -0.3 -0.4 -0.4 23,363 22,843 22,686 23,383 -0.1

 Beverages......................................... 18,980 19,063 19,154 -0.4 -0.5 -0.4 19,105 18,809 18,654 19,010 0.5

 Tobacco............................................ 4,322 4,317 4,331 0.1 -0.3 -0.5 4,258 4,034 4,032 4,373 -2.6

 Textile mills............................................ 3,267 3,255 3,248 0.4 0.2 0.5 3,279 3,278 3,276 3,180 3.1

 Textile products...................................... 3,432 3,428 3,418 0.1 0.3 0.3 3,434 3,435 3,407 3,301 4.0

 Apparel................................................. 2,074 2,022 1,997 2.6 1.3 -0.9 2,159 2,132 2,105 2,254 -4.2

 Leather and allied products....................... 790 797 802 -0.9 -0.6 0.3 799 823 821 806 -0.9

 Paper products....................................... 15,555 15,587 15,638 -0.2 -0.3 0.4 15,540 15,634 15,733 15,563 -0.1

 Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills........... 6,185 6,225 6,224 -0.6 0.0 -0.1 6,134 6,203 6,237 6,207 -1.2

 Paperboard containers......................... 4,918 4,923 4,954 -0.1 -0.6 1.4 4,900 4,919 4,967 4,836 1.3

 Printing.................................................. 5,426 5,396 5,406 0.6 -0.2 0.0 5,479 5,514 5,435 5,533 -1.0

 Petroleum and coal products..................... 38,630 36,807 35,058 5.0 5.0 2.4 39,232 37,054 36,314 31,768 23.5

 Petroleum refineries............................. 33,980 32,215 30,471 5.5 5.7 2.8 34,671 32,435 31,657 27,288 27.1

 Chemical products..................................... 83,106 83,116 83,160 0.0 -0.1 0.0 82,437 83,661 83,991 81,484 1.2

 Pesticides, fertilizers, and other

 agricultural chemicals........................ 4,143 4,198 4,233 -1.3 -0.8 -0.8 3,870 4,005 3,960 3,863 0.2

 Pharmaceuticals and medicines.............. 34,828 34,757 34,668 0.2 0.3 0.4 34,586 35,014 35,106 34,844 -0.7

 Paints, coatings, and adhesives.............. 3,935 3,896 3,869 1.0 0.7 0.2 3,852 3,849 3,908 3,598 7.1

 Plastics and rubber products..................... 25,760 25,685 25,484 0.3 0.8 0.8 25,624 25,592 25,455 24,865 3.1

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2017p 2016 2016

SHIPMENTS

 All manufacturing industries................... 480,390 476,452 473,756 0.8 0.6 0.2 495,631 499,958 450,898 476,622 4,268,359 4,078,102 4.7

 Construction materials and supplies....... 50,072 49,701 49,393 0.7 0.6 -0.7 51,821 54,798 50,009 49,902 451,881 431,916 4.6

 Information technology......................... 23,213 23,016 23,051 0.9 -0.2 2.8 26,557 22,854 21,184 24,761 201,801 191,910 5.2

 Computers and related products........... 1,929 2,035 2,088 -5.2 -2.5 8.0 2,464 1,830 1,750 2,366 17,539 17,596 -0.3

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 54,420 54,593 53,197 -0.3 2.6 -1.7 56,206 59,521 43,200 57,146 489,248 485,529 0.8

 Capital goods...................................... 84,296 82,342 82,923 2.4 -0.7 2.2 91,381 82,881 75,824 86,297 727,940 704,272 3.4

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 73,719 71,915 72,612 2.5 -1.0 2.0 79,772 72,493 66,701 75,587 637,035 621,021 2.6

 Excluding aircraft............................. 65,383 64,780 63,942 0.9 1.3 1.0 69,982 65,243 59,432 65,753 569,972 551,380 3.4

 Defense capital goods4

........................ 10,577 10,427 10,311 1.4 1.1 3.2 11,609 10,388 9,123 10,710 90,905 83,251 9.2

 Consumer goods.................................. 199,090 197,345 195,100 0.9 1.2 0.3 202,935 206,744 187,129 190,480 1,754,691 1,638,422 7.1

 Consumer durable goods..................... 37,477 37,595 36,693 -0.3 2.5 -1.8 39,207 40,196 29,955 40,399 336,550 343,173 -1.9

 Consumer nondurable goods................ 161,613 159,750 158,407 1.2 0.8 0.8 163,728 166,548 157,174 150,081 1,418,141 1,295,249 9.5

 All manufacturing industries5

................... 478,455 471,965 466,245 1.4 1.2 -3.3 490,942 486,891 443,570 466,021 4,232,630 4,008,341 5.6

 Construction materials and supplies....... 50,627 50,070 49,786 1.1 0.6 -0.2 51,972 54,336 50,398 49,181 456,644 433,058 5.4

 Information technology......................... 23,794 23,101 22,908 3.0 0.8 2.4 27,953 21,442 20,485 25,814 203,833 197,693 3.1

 Computers and related products........... 1,963 2,065 2,129 -4.9 -3.0 7.7 2,498 1,860 1,791 2,357 17,770 17,584 1.1

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 54,577 54,651 53,104 -0.1 2.9 -2.1 56,425 59,670 43,051 57,043 490,195 484,166 1.2

 Capital goods...................................... 86,432 81,612 79,638 5.9 2.5 -16.0 91,839 75,781 73,372 82,146 725,989 675,303 7.5

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 75,132 70,600 67,861 6.4 4.0 -19.7 78,958 66,793 63,394 69,995 637,581 593,817 7.4

 Excluding aircraft............................. 66,259 65,132 64,258 1.7 1.4 1.3 70,130 63,651 59,278 65,116 576,494 554,985 3.9

 Defense capital goods4

........................ 11,300 11,012 11,777 2.6 -6.5 15.3 12,881 8,988 9,978 12,151 88,408 81,486 8.5

 Consumer goods.................................. 199,035 197,434 195,183 0.8 1.2 0.3 202,996 206,759 187,189 190,624 1,754,934 1,638,702 7.1

 Consumer durable goods..................... 37,422 37,684 36,776 -0.7 2.5 -1.6 39,268 40,211 30,015 40,543 336,793 343,453 -1.9

 Consumer nondurable goods.............. 161,613 159,750 158,407 1.2 0.8 0.8 163,728 166,548 157,174 150,081 1,418,141 1,295,249 9.5

 All manufacturing industries5

................... 1,134,990 1,132,326 1,132,365 0.2 0.0 -0.3 1,126,005 1,126,322 1,134,728 1,110,279 (X) (X) 1.4

 Construction materials and supplies....... 53,566 53,011 52,642 1.0 0.7 0.8 53,438 53,287 53,749 49,599 (X) (X) 7.7

 Information technology......................... 119,693 119,112 119,027 0.5 0.1 -0.1 119,262 117,866 119,278 115,612 (X) (X) 3.2

 Computers and related products........... 1,920 1,886 1,856 1.8 1.6 2.3 1,920 1,886 1,856 1,667 (X) (X) 15.2

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 23,992 23,835 23,777 0.7 0.2 -0.4 23,847 23,628 23,479 22,948 (X) (X) 3.9

 Capital goods...................................... 848,441 846,305 847,035 0.3 -0.1 -0.4 842,226 841,768 848,868 831,303 (X) (X) 1.3

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 704,835 703,422 704,737 0.2 -0.2 -0.7 699,235 700,049 705,749 691,732 (X) (X) 1.1

 Excluding aircraft............................. 227,798 226,922 226,570 0.4 0.2 0.1 226,087 225,939 227,531 220,269 (X) (X) 2.6

 Defense capital goods4........................ 143,606 142,883 142,298 0.5 0.4 1.0 142,991 141,719 143,119 139,571 (X) (X) 2.5

 Consumer goods.................................. 5,391 5,446 5,357 -1.0 1.7 1.6 5,247 5,186 5,171 5,056 (X) (X) 3.8

 Consumer durable goods..................... 5,391 5,446 5,357 -1.0 1.7 1.6 5,247 5,186 5,171 5,056 (X) (X) 3.8

 All manufacturing industries................... 660,752 656,323 652,659 0.7 0.6 0.4 660,371 660,704 656,270 636,647 (X) (X) 3.7

 Construction materials and supplies....... 68,020 67,660 67,191 0.5 0.7 0.7 67,527 67,632 67,523 64,297 (X) (X) 5.0

 Information technology......................... 38,532 38,490 38,385 0.1 0.3 0.1 38,188 39,502 38,869 37,257 (X) (X) 2.5

 Computers and related products........... 4,393 4,362 4,355 0.7 0.2 0.1 4,358 4,571 4,485 4,150 (X) (X) 5.0

 Motor vehicle and parts......................... 35,152 34,751 34,773 1.2 -0.1 1.2 35,093 35,093 35,279 34,893 (X) (X) 0.6

 Capital goods...................................... 203,253 202,047 200,851 0.6 0.6 0.3 202,451 204,026 201,807 196,411 (X) (X) 3.1

 Nondefense capital goods3

.................. 179,857 178,565 177,638 0.7 0.5 -0.1 179,120 180,581 178,490 175,160 (X) (X) 2.3

 Excluding aircraft............................. 124,631 123,844 123,206 0.6 0.5 0.1 124,250 126,102 124,326 118,945 (X) (X) 4.5

 Defense capital goods4........................ 23,396 23,482 23,213 -0.4 1.2 3.5 23,331 23,445 23,317 21,251 (X) (X) 9.8

 Consumer goods.................................. 196,978 195,063 193,345 1.0 0.9 0.3 198,621 196,351 194,187 190,028 (X) (X) 4.5

 Consumer durable goods..................... 29,848 29,703 29,596 0.5 0.4 0.4 30,045 30,301 29,887 29,298 (X) (X) 2.5

 Consumer nondurable goods................ 167,130 165,360 163,749 1.1 1.0 0.3 168,576 166,050 164,300 160,730 (X) (X) 4.9

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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 September

Sep. Aug. July Aug. - July - June - Sep. Aug. July Sep. 2017/

2017p 2017r 2017 Sep. Aug. July 2017p 2017r 2017 2016 2016

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

 All manufacturing industries....................... 226,640 223,844 222,241 1.2 0.7 0.0 226,385 224,326 223,202 216,673 4.5

 Durable goods industries.......................... 136,506 135,430 134,923 0.8 0.4 0.1 136,838 136,468 135,780 131,615 4.0

 Wood products................................... 4,829 4,856 4,925 -0.6 -1.4 0.7 4,948 4,890 4,859 4,664 6.1

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 5,513 5,488 5,448 0.5 0.7 -0.3 5,489 5,493 5,466 5,342 2.8

 Primary metals.................................... 12,702 12,726 12,668 -0.2 0.5 0.4 12,910 12,808 12,682 11,937 8.2

 Fabricated metal products........................ 18,639 18,334 18,206 1.7 0.7 0.5 18,694 18,468 18,350 17,869 4.6

 Machinery.......................................... 24,559 24,326 23,998 1.0 1.4 0.2 24,640 24,657 24,398 23,918 3.0

 Computers and electronic products........ 18,607 18,122 17,947 2.7 1.0 -1.1 18,421 18,288 18,095 17,320 6.4

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 7,003 6,961 6,933 0.6 0.4 -2.4 6,913 7,039 7,020 6,827 1.3

 Transportation equipment..................... 33,069 33,047 33,284 0.1 -0.7 0.7 33,209 33,062 33,268 32,386 2.5

 Furniture and related products............... 3,745 3,782 3,758 -1.0 0.6 0.5 3,736 3,814 3,793 3,570 4.6

 Miscellaneous products......................... 7,840 7,788 7,756 0.7 0.4 0.1 7,878 7,949 7,849 7,782 1.2

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 90,134 88,414 87,318 1.9 1.3 -0.1 89,547 87,858 87,422 85,058 5.3

 Food products.................................... 19,441 19,426 19,337 0.1 0.5 -0.8 19,108 19,132 19,055 19,000 0.6

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 5,771 5,744 5,774 0.5 -0.5 -0.4 5,696 5,555 5,567 5,947 -4.2

 Textiles.............................................. 1,146 1,139 1,130 0.6 0.8 0.0 1,142 1,151 1,135 1,114 2.5

 Textile products................................... 1,267 1,268 1,266 -0.1 0.2 0.9 1,271 1,272 1,265 1,284 -1.0

 Apparel............................................. 508 506 516 0.4 -1.9 -0.8 520 514 528 596 -12.8

 Leather and allied products.................... 222 221 223 0.5 -0.9 0.9 226 229 229 237 -4.6

 Paper products.................................... 7,734 7,692 7,715 0.5 -0.3 0.6 7,733 7,714 7,730 7,762 -0.4

 Printing ............................................. 2,614 2,620 2,614 -0.2 0.2 0.5 2,642 2,659 2,647 2,691 -1.8

 Petroleum and coal products................. 12,046 10,611 9,739 13.5 9.0 0.8 12,099 10,342 9,995 9,216 31.3

 Chemical products................................ 28,924 28,855 28,720 0.2 0.5 -0.5 28,644 28,921 28,959 26,860 6.6

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 10,461 10,332 10,284 1.2 0.5 0.5 10,466 10,369 10,312 10,351 1.1

WORK IN PROCESS

 All manufacturing industries....................... 205,485 203,713 202,138 0.9 0.8 0.8 204,340 204,725 203,062 195,445 4.6

 Durable goods industries.......................... 152,765 151,506 150,548 0.8 0.6 0.5 152,004 152,730 151,518 148,761 2.2

 Wood products................................... 1,998 1,953 1,911 2.3 2.2 0.6 1,979 1,923 1,882 1,994 -0.8

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 1,499 1,472 1,479 1.8 -0.5 1.2 1,464 1,464 1,495 1,437 1.9

 Primary metals.................................... 9,872 9,698 9,621 1.8 0.8 2.2 9,866 9,873 9,814 9,026 9.3

 Fabricated metal products........................ 13,363 13,214 13,188 1.1 0.2 0.4 13,408 13,323 13,340 12,685 5.7

 Machinery.......................................... 21,293 21,220 21,010 0.3 1.0 0.0 21,298 21,670 21,017 20,007 6.5

 Computers and electronic products........ 13,839 13,961 13,975 -0.9 -0.1 0.3 13,495 14,310 14,286 13,418 0.6

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 3,932 3,921 3,936 0.3 -0.4 0.7 3,884 3,987 3,992 3,722 4.4

 Transportation equipment..................... 82,229 81,330 80,724 1.1 0.8 0.3 81,835 81,366 80,932 81,861 0.0

 Furniture and related products............... 1,176 1,184 1,158 -0.7 2.2 0.0 1,173 1,194 1,169 1,110 5.7

 Miscellaneous products......................... 3,564 3,553 3,546 0.3 0.2 2.0 3,602 3,620 3,591 3,501 2.9

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 52,720 52,207 51,590 1.0 1.2 2.0 52,336 51,995 51,544 46,684 12.1

 Food products.................................... 6,223 5,968 6,086 4.3 -1.9 -0.1 5,744 5,456 5,725 5,531 3.9

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 8,964 9,081 9,036 -1.3 0.5 0.7 9,009 8,451 8,295 8,509 5.9

 Textiles.............................................. 679 675 675 0.6 0.0 1.8 686 681 688 665 3.2

 Textile products................................... 412 405 406 1.7 -0.2 -1.2 418 405 408 416 0.5

 Apparel............................................. 328 321 317 2.2 1.3 -1.2 344 344 334 358 -3.9

 Leather and allied products.................... 85 86 83 -1.2 3.6 -1.2 85 88 83 95 -10.5

 Paper products.................................... 1,197 1,221 1,241 -2.0 -1.6 0.0 1,197 1,246 1,255 1,264 -5.3

 Printing ............................................. 1,063 1,004 1,008 5.9 -0.4 -1.3 1,095 1,084 1,031 1,147 -4.5

 Petroleum and coal products................. 12,348 12,026 11,544 2.7 4.2 4.2 12,547 12,387 12,069 9,359 34.1

 Chemical products................................ 18,205 18,240 18,044 -0.2 1.1 2.9 18,018 18,692 18,505 16,320 10.4

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 3,216 3,180 3,150 1.1 1.0 -0.3 3,193 3,161 3,151 3,020 5.7

FINISHED GOODS

 All manufacturing industries....................... 228,627 228,766 228,280 -0.1 0.2 0.4 229,646 231,653 230,006 224,529 2.3

 Durable goods industries.......................... 114,649 114,387 113,841 0.2 0.5 0.9 113,878 115,498 114,579 108,527 4.9

 Wood products................................... 4,956 4,965 4,946 -0.2 0.4 -0.1 4,739 4,855 4,876 4,415 7.3

 Nonmetallic mineral products................. 6,495 6,490 6,429 0.1 0.9 1.8 6,346 6,433 6,465 6,109 3.9

 Primary metals.................................... 11,146 11,075 11,015 0.6 0.5 -0.2 11,103 11,034 11,130 10,255 8.3

 Fabricated metal products........................ 18,404 18,517 18,351 -0.6 0.9 1.5 18,156 18,436 18,535 17,176 5.7

 Machinery.......................................... 23,872 23,619 23,492 1.1 0.5 0.2 23,704 23,760 23,439 21,867 8.4

 Computers and electronic products........ 12,700 12,793 12,714 -0.7 0.6 2.4 12,739 13,291 12,825 12,282 3.7

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................... 6,860 6,843 6,771 0.2 1.1 2.2 6,816 7,039 6,936 6,350 7.3

 Transportation equipment..................... 15,697 15,655 15,798 0.3 -0.9 1.8 15,657 15,956 15,956 15,968 -1.9

 Furniture and related products............... 2,895 2,803 2,794 3.3 0.3 -0.4 2,894 2,938 2,945 2,634 9.9

 Miscellaneous products......................... 11,624 11,627 11,531 0.0 0.8 -0.4 11,724 11,756 11,472 11,471 2.2

 Nondurable goods industries...................... 113,978 114,379 114,439 -0.4 -0.1 -0.2 115,768 116,155 115,427 116,002 -0.2

 Food products.................................... 29,826 30,133 30,228 -1.0 -0.3 -0.6 31,453 31,454 30,390 31,076 1.2

 Beverage and tobacco products................... 8,567 8,555 8,675 0.1 -1.4 -1.5 8,658 8,837 8,824 8,927 -3.0

 Textiles.............................................. 1,442 1,441 1,443 0.1 -0.1 0.3 1,451 1,446 1,453 1,401 3.6

 Textile products................................... 1,753 1,755 1,746 -0.1 0.5 0.3 1,745 1,758 1,734 1,601 9.0

 Apparel............................................. 1,238 1,195 1,164 3.6 2.7 -0.9 1,295 1,274 1,243 1,300 -0.4

 Leather and allied products.................... 483 490 496 -1.4 -1.2 0.2 488 506 509 474 3.0

 Paper products.................................... 6,624 6,674 6,682 -0.7 -0.1 0.2 6,610 6,674 6,748 6,537 1.1

 Printing ............................................. 1,749 1,772 1,784 -1.3 -0.7 -0.1 1,742 1,771 1,757 1,695 2.8

 Petroleum and coal products................. 14,236 14,170 13,775 0.5 2.9 2.1 14,586 14,325 14,250 13,193 10.6

 Chemical products................................ 35,977 36,021 36,396 -0.1 -1.0 -0.9 35,775 36,048 36,527 38,304 -6.6

 Plastics and rubber products.................. 12,083 12,173 12,050 -0.7 1.0 1.4 11,965 12,062 11,992 11,494 4.1

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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 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 Sep Aug Jul Jun Sep Aug Jul Jun

2017p 2017r 2017 2017 2017p 2017r 2017 2017

All manufacturing industries3

............................ 1.38 1.38 1.38 1.38 (X) (X) (X) (X)

Durable goods industries3

.................................. 1.68 1.68 1.69 1.68 6.70 6.76 6.77 6.82

 Wood products.............................................. 1.27 1.29 1.31 1.30 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Nonmetallic mineral products......................... 1.27 1.27 1.27 1.25 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Primary metals.............................................. 1.72 1.70 1.72 1.72 1.56 1.56 1.57 1.56

 Fabricated metal products.............................. 1.56 1.56 1.56 1.55 2.55 2.54 2.55 2.51

 Machinery..................................................... 2.17 2.19 2.21 2.20 3.51 3.59 3.64 3.60

 Computers and electronic products3

................ 1.65 1.65 1.66 1.67 5.63 5.65 5.69 5.81

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components........................................ 1.76 1.76 1.77 1.74 2.43 2.45 2.46 2.42

 Transportation equipment.............................. 1.65 1.65 1.65 1.64 14.66 14.89 14.62 14.90

 Furniture and related products........................ 1.20 1.18 1.18 1.20 1.68 1.68 1.71 1.71

 Miscellaneous products.................................. 1.81 1.82 1.82 1.83 (X) (X) (X) (X)

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

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

 Beverage and tobacco products...................... 1.84 1.78 1.78 1.76 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Textiles........................................................ 1.24 1.23 1.23 1.24 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Textile products............................................ 1.55 1.57 1.55 1.53 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Apparel......................................................... 2.02 1.95 1.88 1.91 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Leather and allied products............................. 2.08 2.11 2.08 2.09 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Paper products.............................................. 0.96 0.96 0.98 0.98 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Printing......................................................... 0.87 0.86 0.86 0.86 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Petroleum and coal products........................... 0.86 0.86 0.85 0.85 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Chemical products......................................... 1.28 1.28 1.28 1.28 (X) (X) (X) (X)

 Plastics and rubber products........................... 1.30 1.30 1.28 1.26 (X) (X) (X) (X)

Sep3 Sep3 Sep3 Sep3

Industry 2016- 2016- 2016- 2016-

Sep2 Aug Sep2 Aug Sep2 Aug Sep2 Aug

2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017

 

All manufacturing industries.................. (X) 0.2 (X) 0.3 (X) 0.1 (X) 0.1

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

 Wood products................................... (X) 0.4 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Nonmetallic mineral products.............. (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.1

 Primary metals.................................... -0.8 0.3 -1.2 0.7 -0.1 0.4 0.2 0.3

 Fabricated metal products.................... 0.0 0.4 0.0 1.1 0.0 0.3 0.1 0.1

 Machinery.......................................... 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.6 -0.1 0.2 -0.1 0.1

 Computers and electronic products..... 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.6 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.1

 Electrical equipment, appliances,

 and components............................. -0.1 0.4 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.3 -0.1 0.2

 Transportation equipment.................... -0.3 0.2 -0.4 1.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1

 Furniture and related products............. (X) 0.3 (X) 0.8 (X) 0.4 (X) 0.2

 Miscellaneous products...................... (X) 0.4 (X) 0.4 (X) 0.3 (X) 0.1

Nondurable goods industries................... (X) 0.2 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.3

 Food products................................... (X) 0.4 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.4

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

 Textiles............................................. (X) 0.5 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Textile products.................................. (X) 0.7 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.3

 Apparel.............................................. (X) 1.1 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.6

 Leather and allied products.................... (X) 0.6 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.3

 Paper products.................................... (X) 0.3 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Printing.............................................. (X) 0.4 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.2

 Petroleum and coal products................. (X) 0.7 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 1.9

 Chemical products................................ (X) 0.2 (X) (NA) (X) (NA) (X) 0.1

 Plastics and rubber products................. (X) 0.2 (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, September Full Report, November 3, 2017. 

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, September Full Report, 

November 3, 2017. 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