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FOR RELEASE AT 8:30 AM EST, MONDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2019 

MONTHLY ADVANCE REPORT ON MANUFACTURERS’ SHIPMENTS, INVENTORIES AND 

ORDERS NOVEMBER 2019 

Release Number: CB 19-189 M3-1 (19)-11 

December 23, 2019 — The U.S. Census Bureau announces the November advance report on 

manufacturers’ shipments, inventories and orders: 

New Orders 

New orders for manufactured durable goods in November decreased $5.0 billion or 2.0 percent to $242.6 

billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This decrease, down two of the last three months, 

followed a 0.2 percent October increase. Excluding transportation, new orders were virtually unchanged. 

Excluding defense, new orders increased 0.8 percent. Transportation equipment, also down two of the 

last three months, led the decrease, $4.9 billion or 5.9 percent to $79.2 billion. 

Shipments 

Shipments of manufactured durable goods in November, up following four consecutive monthly 

decreases, increased $0.2 billion or 0.1 percent to $251.6 billion. This followed a 0.1 percent October 

decrease. Fabricated metal products, up three of the last four months, drove the increase, $0.3 billion or 

1.0 percent to $34.1 billion. 

DURABLE GOODS – NEW ORDERS 

NOVEMBER 2019 $242.6 billion -2.0%° 

OCTOBER 2019 

(revised) $247.6 billion +0.2%° 

Next release: January 28, 2020 

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, December 

23, 2019.

Dec-18 Jan-19 Feb-19 Mar-19 Apr-19 May-19 Jun-19 Jul-19 Aug-19 Sep-19 Oct-19 Nov-19

% Change 1.1% 0.5% -2.6% 1.7% -2.8% -2.3% 1.8% 2.1% 0.2% -1.5% 0.2% -2.0%

-8.0%

-7.0%

-6.0%

-5.0%

-4.0%

-3.0%

-2.0%

-1.0%

0.0%

1.0%

2.0%

3.0%

4.0%

5.0%

6.0%

7.0%

8.0%

DURABLE GOODS NEW ORDERS 2018-2019

Seasonally Adjusted, Month-To-Month Percentage Change

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

December 23, 2019. 
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Unfilled Orders 

Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in November, down two of the last three months, 

decreased $4.7 billion or 0.4 percent to $1,159.0 billion. This followed a virtually unchanged October 

increase. Transportation equipment, down following four consecutive monthly increases, led the 

decrease, $4.6 billion or 0.6 percent to $790.3 billion. 

Inventories 

Inventories of manufactured durable goods in November, up sixteen of the last seventeen months, 

increased $1.8 billion or 0.4 percent to $434.0 billion. This followed a 0.4 percent October increase. 

Transportation equipment, also up sixteen of the last seventeen months, drove the increase, $1.8 billion or 

1.2 percent to $149.3 billion. 

Capital Goods 

Nondefense new orders for capital goods in November decreased $1.3 billion or 1.8 percent to $71.3 

billion. Shipments decreased $0.7 billion or 0.9 percent to $74.4 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $3.1 

billion or 0.5 percent to $684.3 billion. Inventories increased $1.1 billion or 0.6 percent to $196.8 billion. 

Defense new orders for capital goods in November decreased $5.5 billion or 35.6 percent to $10.0 billion. 

Shipments decreased $0.1 billion or 0.5 percent to $12.8 billion. Unfilled orders decreased $2.7 billion or 

1.7 percent to $158.2 billion. Inventories increased less than $0.1 billion or 0.2 percent to $24.3 billion. 

Revised October Data

Revised seasonally adjusted October figures for all manufacturing industries were: new orders, $496.2 

billion (revised from $497.0 billion); shipments, $500.0 billion (revised from $500.2 billion); unfilled orders, 

$1,163.7 billion (revised from $1,164.3 billion) and total inventories, $698.8 billion (unchanged). 

Revised and more detailed estimates, plus nondurable goods data, will be published on January 7, 2020, at 

10:00 a.m. EST. The Advance Report on durable goods for December is scheduled for release on January 

28, 2020 at 8:30 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>.
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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-inprocess, 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 monthto-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-to-month changes of the total operations of the reporting units in the M3 panel 

effectively represent the month-to-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 
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survey documentation can be found on our web site: 

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

2020 RELEASE DATES FOR THE M3 SURVEY 

Survey month Advance Report 

 (8:30 a.m. release time) 

Full Report 

 (10:00 a.m. release time) 

Nov-19 Mon 12/23/2019* Tue 1/7/2020 

Dec-19 Tue 1/28/2020 Tue 2/4/2020 

Jan-20 Thu 2/27/2020 Thu 3/5/2020 

Feb-20 Wed 3/25/2020 Thu 4/2/2020 

Mar-20 Fri 4/24/2020 Mon 5/4/2020 

Apr-20 Thu 5/28/2020 Wed 6/3/2020 

May-20 Thu 6/25/2020 Thu 7/2/2020 

Jun-20 Mon 7/27/2020 Tue 8/4/2020 

Jul-20 Wed 8/26/2020 Wed 9/2/2020 

Aug-20 Fri 9/25/2020 Fri 10/2/2020 

Sep-20 Tue 10/27/2020 Tue 11/3/2020 

Oct-20 Wed 11/25/2020 Fri 12/4/2020 

Nov-20 Thu 12/24/2020 Not available at this time 

*Due to the executive order issued by President Trump closing the federal government on December 24, 

2019, the U.S. Census Bureau will release the Monthly Advance Report on Manufacturers' Shipments, 

Inventories and Orders on Monday, December 23, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. The original release date was 

scheduled for Tuesday, December 24 at 8:30 a.m. 

Source: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/pfei_schedule_release_dates_2020.pdf

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. Durable Goods Manufacturers' Shipments and New Orders 1

[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

Item Percent

Nov Oct Sep Oct - Sep - Aug - Nov Oct Nov Change

2019 2 2019 r 2019 Nov 2 Oct r Sep 2019 2 2019 r 2018 2019 2018 2019/2018

DURABLE GOODS

 Total: 

 Shipments................................ 251,595 251,386 251,606 0.1 -0.1 -0.7 241,366 260,912 251,463 2,798,343 2,764,253 1.2

 New Orders4

.............................. 242,625 247,629 247,059 -2.0 0.2 -1.5 230,959 252,891 245,038 2,720,379 2,755,074 -1.3

 Excluding transportation:

 Shipments................................ 167,800 167,592 167,595 0.1 0.0 -0.1 159,781 172,938 161,811 1,847,364 1,821,316 1.4

 New Orders4

.............................. 163,439 163,503 163,022 0.0 0.3 -0.6 153,794 166,905 156,302 1,800,858 1,794,143 0.4

 Excluding defense:

 Shipments................................ 236,926 236,620 236,791 0.1 -0.1 -0.8 225,880 246,358 236,590 2,638,024 2,617,095 0.8

 New Orders4

.............................. 231,696 229,948 229,853 0.8 0.0 -1.9 219,496 236,166 227,495 2,560,586 2,590,941 -1.2

 Manufacturing with unfilled orders:

 Shipments................................ 173,976 174,327 173,690 -0.2 0.4 -0.3 166,668 177,959 174,678 1,933,870 1,921,486 0.6

 New Orders.............................. 169,244 174,788 173,464 -3.2 0.8 -1.4 161,068 174,942 172,955 1,903,044 1,956,931 -2.8

 Primary metals:

 Shipments................................ 20,011 20,060 20,240 -0.2 -0.9 0.3 18,490 20,485 20,543 227,669 236,060 -3.6

 New Orders.............................. 20,087 20,151 20,483 -0.3 -1.6 -0.5 19,025 20,107 20,721 227,679 238,699 -4.6

 Fabricated metal products:

 Shipments................................ 34,146 33,821 33,861 1.0 -0.1 0.5 32,365 35,517 32,057 373,304 362,354 3.0

 New Orders.............................. 33,799 33,673 33,316 0.4 1.1 -2.3 31,504 34,420 31,909 374,159 368,786 1.5

 Machinery:

 Shipments................................ 32,513 32,998 32,737 -1.5 0.8 -1.6 29,917 33,412 30,940 363,050 358,410 1.3

 New Orders.............................. 32,419 32,939 32,651 -1.6 0.9 -0.1 29,479 33,404 30,514 360,231 362,214 -0.5

 Computers and electronic products4

:

 Shipments................................ 27,922 27,798 27,709 0.4 0.3 -0.3 27,890 27,708 27,927 302,028 291,904 3.5

 New Orders.............................. 23,644 23,586 23,510 0.2 0.3 -0.5 22,514 22,842 23,187 255,413 250,841 1.8

 Computers and related products:

 Shipments................................ 1,915 1,756 1,654 9.1 6.2 -3.6 1,768 1,589 1,742 18,691 19,592 -4.6

 New Orders.............................. 1,945 1,786 1,695 8.9 5.4 0.8 1,798 1,619 1,801 18,701 19,905 -6.0

 Communications equipment:

 Shipments................................ 3,818 3,823 3,875 -0.1 -1.3 0.2 3,523 3,344 3,496 40,818 37,473 8.9

 New Orders.............................. 3,814 3,705 3,710 2.9 -0.1 1.5 3,464 3,290 3,592 39,674 38,786 2.3

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components: 

 Shipments................................ 11,741 11,520 11,751 1.9 -2.0 0.6 11,299 11,955 11,163 128,428 124,616 3.1

 New Orders.............................. 11,932 11,699 11,841 2.0 -1.2 0.9 11,361 12,202 10,946 129,722 124,819 3.9

 Transportation equipment: 

 Shipments................................ 83,795 83,794 84,011 0.0 -0.3 -1.8 81,585 87,974 89,652 950,979 942,937 0.9

 New Orders.............................. 79,186 84,126 84,037 -5.9 0.1 -3.2 77,165 85,986 88,736 919,521 960,931 -4.3

 Motor vehicles and parts:

 Shipments................................ 59,470 58,886 60,042 1.0 -1.9 -2.6 57,033 63,832 60,402 675,440 651,933 3.6

 New Orders.............................. 59,734 58,619 59,605 1.9 -1.7 -2.9 57,717 62,350 60,785 673,389 651,695 3.3

 Nondefense aircraft and parts:

 Shipments................................ 9,422 10,023 9,331 -6.0 7.4 1.8 9,323 9,143 14,845 115,718 143,575 -19.4

 New Orders.............................. 7,840 7,986 7,340 -1.8 8.8 -19.0 7,299 6,542 10,721 88,962 143,466 -38.0

 Defense aircraft and parts:

 Shipments................................ 4,168 4,359 4,225 -4.4 3.2 -3.1 4,256 4,304 4,758 48,665 49,068 -0.8

 New Orders.............................. 1,942 7,110 6,197 -72.7 14.7 14.7 2,362 7,054 7,197 49,729 57,810 -14.0

 All other durable goods: 

 Shipments................................ 41,467 41,395 41,297 0.2 0.2 0.3 39,820 43,861 39,181 452,885 447,972 1.1

 New Orders.............................. 41,558 41,455 41,221 0.2 0.6 -0.1 39,911 43,930 39,025 453,654 448,784 1.1

 Capital goods3

:

 Shipments................................ 87,182 87,906 86,938 -0.8 1.1 0.0 84,181 87,375 89,642 965,755 966,789 -0.1

 New Orders.............................. 81,295 88,141 84,952 -7.8 3.8 -2.8 76,354 87,037 87,418 934,227 978,745 -4.5

 Nondefense capital goods:

 Shipments................................ 74,394 75,055 74,092 -0.9 1.3 -0.3 70,536 74,663 76,718 826,936 841,001 -1.7

 New Orders.............................. 71,255 72,554 71,028 -1.8 2.1 -3.5 65,973 72,713 72,659 796,172 844,517 -5.7

 Excluding aircraft:

 Shipments........................... 69,070 69,295 68,786 -0.3 0.7 -0.8 65,250 69,684 66,215 757,862 742,968 2.0

 New Orders.......................... 69,395 69,313 68,533 0.1 1.1 -0.5 64,968 69,922 65,658 755,063 749,867 0.7

 Defense capital goods:

 Shipments................................ 12,788 12,851 12,846 -0.5 0.0 1.6 13,645 12,712 12,924 138,819 125,788 10.4

 New Orders.............................. 10,040 15,587 13,924 -35.6 11.9 0.8 10,381 14,324 14,759 138,055 134,228 2.9

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 Based on advance sample. 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. 3

 The Capital Goods Industries include Nondefense : 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. Defense Capital Goods include : small arms and ordnance, communications equipment, aircraft; missiles, space vehicles, and parts, ships and 

boats, and search and navigation equipment. 

4

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

orders exclude semiconductor industry data. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, November Advance Report, December 23, 2019. 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. Durable Goods Manufacturers' Unfilled Orders and Total Inventories 1

[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 Percent

Item Change

Nov Oct Sep Oct - Sep - Aug - Nov Oct Nov 2019/

2019 2 2019 r 2019 Nov 2 Oct r Sep 2019 2 2019 r 2018 2018

DURABLE GOODS

 Total: 

 Unfilled Orders4......................... 1,158,974 1,163,706 1,163,245 -0.4 0.0 0.0 1,148,808 1,154,408 1,171,857 -2.0

 Total Inventories....................... 433,959 432,150 430,595 0.4 0.4 0.5 433,770 432,466 414,315 4.7

 Excluding transportation:

 Unfilled Orders4

......................... 368,636 368,759 368,630 0.0 0.0 -0.1 363,689 364,869 364,024 -0.1

 Total Inventories....................... 284,626 284,646 285,047 0.0 -0.1 0.0 283,923 283,796 282,457 0.5

 Excluding defense:

 Unfilled Orders4

........................... 958,560 959,552 962,006 -0.1 -0.3 -0.3 949,019 950,596 974,701 -2.6

 Total Inventories....................... 405,181 403,412 402,251 0.4 0.3 0.5 405,013 403,768 387,161 4.6

 Manufacturing with unfilled orders:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 1,158,974 1,163,706 1,163,245 -0.4 0.0 0.0 1,148,808 1,154,408 1,171,857 -2.0

 Total Inventories....................... 354,539 352,974 351,382 0.4 0.5 0.6 354,494 353,516 337,394 5.1

 Primary metals:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 32,122 32,046 31,955 0.2 0.3 0.8 31,113 30,578 30,517 2.0

 Total Inventories....................... 34,986 34,811 34,910 0.5 -0.3 -0.2 34,795 34,513 36,062 -3.5

 Fabricated metal products:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 85,982 86,329 86,477 -0.4 -0.2 -0.6 84,419 85,280 83,806 0.7

 Total Inventories....................... 54,079 54,259 54,370 -0.3 -0.2 0.1 53,569 53,929 54,136 -1.0

 Machinery: 

 Unfilled Orders......................... 102,049 102,143 102,202 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 100,981 101,419 105,141 -4.0

 Total Inventories....................... 71,680 71,962 72,225 -0.4 -0.4 0.0 72,163 72,006 70,936 1.7

 Computers and electronic products4

:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 118,553 118,593 118,587 0.0 0.0 0.1 117,566 118,135 116,031 1.3

 Total Inventories....................... 43,700 43,465 43,559 0.5 -0.2 0.4 43,800 43,579 43,492 0.7

 Computers and related products:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 2,205 2,175 2,145 1.4 1.4 1.9 2,205 2,175 2,191 0.6

 Total Inventories....................... 3,868 3,836 3,879 0.8 -1.1 1.2 3,940 3,804 3,804 3.6

 Communications equipment:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 25,100 25,104 25,222 0.0 -0.5 -0.6 24,949 25,008 26,372 -5.4

 Total Inventories....................... 5,475 5,546 5,574 -1.3 -0.5 -0.3 5,595 5,612 5,581 0.3

 Electrical equipment, appliances, 

 and components: 

 Unfilled Orders......................... 20,551 20,360 20,181 0.9 0.9 0.4 20,249 20,187 19,235 5.3

 Total Inventories....................... 20,395 20,430 20,271 -0.2 0.8 -0.1 20,039 20,309 19,152 4.6

 Transportation equipment: 

 Unfilled Orders......................... 790,338 794,947 794,615 -0.6 0.0 0.0 785,119 789,539 807,833 -2.8

 Total Inventories....................... 149,333 147,504 145,548 1.2 1.3 1.6 149,847 148,670 131,858 13.6

 Motor vehicles and parts:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 26,087 25,823 26,090 1.0 -1.0 -1.6 25,141 24,457 26,269 -4.3

 Total Inventories....................... 39,183 38,998 39,007 0.5 0.0 0.5 39,152 39,289 36,961 5.9

 Nondefense Aircraft and parts:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 575,627 577,209 579,246 -0.3 -0.4 -0.3 571,432 573,456 593,001 -3.6

 Total Inventories....................... 79,875 78,350 76,819 1.9 2.0 2.2 80,349 79,119 66,875 20.1

 Defense Aircraft and parts: 

 Unfilled Orders......................... 83,389 85,615 82,864 -2.6 3.3 2.4 83,253 85,147 81,236 2.5

 Total Inventories....................... 13,430 13,528 13,502 -0.7 0.2 0.7 13,525 13,571 13,273 1.9

 All other durable goods: 

 Unfilled Orders......................... 9,379 9,288 9,228 1.0 0.7 -0.8 9,361 9,270 9,294 0.7

 Total Inventories....................... 59,786 59,719 59,712 0.1 0.0 -0.1 59,557 59,460 58,679 1.5

 Capital goods3

:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 842,472 848,359 848,124 -0.7 0.0 -0.2 835,669 843,496 861,049 -2.9

 Total Inventories....................... 221,146 220,002 218,351 0.5 0.8 0.9 222,266 221,005 205,496 8.2

 Nondefense capital goods:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 684,304 687,443 689,944 -0.5 -0.4 -0.4 678,656 683,219 706,328 -3.9

 Total Inventories....................... 196,809 195,713 194,441 0.6 0.7 0.9 198,045 196,799 182,725 8.4

 Excluding aircraft: 

 Unfilled Orders.................... 218,226 217,901 217,883 0.1 0.0 -0.1 216,546 216,828 221,389 -2.2

 Total Inventories................... 129,554 129,826 130,110 -0.2 -0.2 0.2 130,466 130,234 127,846 2.0

 Defense capital goods:

 Unfilled Orders......................... 158,168 160,916 158,180 -1.7 1.7 0.7 157,013 160,277 154,721 1.5

 Total Inventories....................... 24,337 24,289 23,910 0.2 1.6 0.8 24,221 24,206 22,771 6.4

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

 Based on advance sample. 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. 

3

 The Capital Goods Industries include Nondefense : 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. Defense Capital Goods include : small arms and ordnance, communications equipment, aircraft; missiles, space vehicles, and parts, ships and boats, and search and navigation equipment. 4

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

changes for new orders and unfilled orders exclude semiconductor industry data. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) Survey, November Advance Report, December 23, 2019. 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>.