Shipments of manufactured durable goods were up $3.5 billion, or 2 percent, to $173.1 billion in July, following a 0.7 percent boost in June
, according to a report by the U.S. Census Bureau. July marks the second consecutive month shipments have seen an uptick.

(Durable goods include large items such as refrigerators and air conditioners; truckers haul both the finished products and components that go into the making of them.)

The computers and electronics segment, which has been up three out of the last four months, had the largest rise, $2.1 billion or 7.4 percent to $29.8 billion.

New orders for durable goods also gained $7.8 billion in July, up 4.9 percent from June, when shipments fell 1.3 percent. For new orders, July saw the largest percent increase in two years. New orders landed at $168.4 billion during the month.

Meanwhile, unfilled orders dropped $0.4 billion or 0.1 percent to $740.2 billion. Unfilled orders have been down for ten straight months, making it the longest streak of monthly declines since 1992.

Durable goods inventories have been on the decline for seven consecutive months, with a July decrease of $2.7 billion, or 0.8 percent, to $314.1 billion. In June, inventories fell 1.5 percent.

To view the full census report, click here.

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