Business news with words aircraft+department+washington. 6 news.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- A big jump in demand for civilian aircraft pushed durable-goods orders up for the first time in four months in November, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- A big jump in demand for civilian aircraft pushed durable goods orders up for the first time in four months in November, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Excluding transportation orders, however, durable goods orders fell by 0.7% in November. New orders for non-defense aircraft and parts shot up by 20.9% in November, the data show. However, new orders for defense aircraft and parts dropped by 20.1% in the same month. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were expecting orders for durable goods to climb by 2.9% in November after falling by 0.2% in October.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Orders for U.S.-made factory goods rose 0.2% in September on higher gasoline prices, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Orders for durable goods fell 1.7% on a big drop in orders for defense aircraft and other defense goods. Orders and shipments for nondurable goods rose 2.1%. The value of shipments from petroleum refiners jumped 11.2% on the month, accounting for all the gain in nondurables. Total factory orders were stronger than the 0.7% decline expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. Factory orders had fallen a revised 3.5% in August. Special one-time factors in both directions clouded the underlying trends in September. Compared with a year ago, orders were down 0.1%, while shipments were off 0.2%.

A controversial scheme for American aid to help its southern neighbour fight drugs looks useful but underwhelming THE idea was first mooted at a meeting near Merida last March between Mexico's president, Felipe Calderon, and George Bush. Months of negotiations culminated in weeks of leaks, mainly from American officials. But for such a well-rehearsed exercise, the announcement when it finally came was oddly low-key. On October 22nd both governments said that in an early-morning telephone call the two presidents had agreed on a plan under which the United States will provide Mexico with $1.4 billion in aid over the next three years to fight drug traffickers. Patricia Espinosa, Mexico's foreign minister, said the largest single chunk of an initial $500m would be spent on aircraft--mostly transport planes, she said, although in Washington, the State Department talked of surveillance aircraft and helicopters. There will also be scanning equipment at the border, and new communications systems, training and technical advice for Mexican police, including help on a witness-protection programme. And the United States will also give $50m in anti-drug aid to the Central American countries.

THE US trade deficit narrowed more than forecast in August as exports climbed to a record for a sixth consecutive month. The gap shrank 2.4 percent to US$57.6 billion, the smallest since January, from a revised US$59 billion in July, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. Foreign companies, benefiting from growing demand and a weaker dollar that's made American goods less expensive, have been snapping up Boeing Co aircraft and General Electric Co turbines. Rising exports will help keep the economy from falling into recession even as the housing slump persists. "The dollar is continuing to decline, which is giving a huge boost to competitiveness," Nigel Gault, chief US economist at Global Insight Inc in Lexington, Massachusetts, said before the report. Economists had forecast the deficit would narrow to US$59 billion, from a previously reported US$59.2 billion in July, according to the median of 74 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Prices of goods

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Orders for durable goods plunged 4.9% in August after a 6.1% gain in July, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday, as bookings for new aircraft see-sawed lower. It was the biggest decline since January. Excluding the 11.2% drop in transportation goods orders, new orders fell 1.8% in August after a 3.4% gain in July. Shipments of durable goods fell 1.6% in August, the biggest decline in 11 months. New orders were soft across the board, reversing the universal strength seen in July's report. Businesses reduced their orders for capital equipment from U.S. factories in August by 0.7%, another sign that capital spending and exports may not be strong enough to offset weakness in other areas of the economy.