Plus: Durable Goods Orders Increase, Global Trade Contracted in 2009 and Material-Handling Equipment Growth Expected.

Senate Approves $15 Billion Jobs Bill
In a rare bipartisan 70-to-28 vote that drew the support of more than a dozen Republicans, the United States Senate last week approved a $15 billion measure meant to spur job creation.

The jobs bill, which now goes to the House of Representatives, contains two major provisions: it would give tax breaks to businesses that hire unemployed workers, and it would pay for construction of highways and improvements in mass transit.

Senate members had been hoping for quick House approval of the $15 billion package, but the measure came under criticism for various reasons, including the bill’s cost and for not being ambitious enough.

“Even its sponsors acknowledge it is limited in scope,” the New York Times‘ The Caucus blog said.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate continues to hover near double digits. The number of Americans filing for initial unemployment insurance surged to just below the 500,000 level in the latest week reported, and have climbed more than 12 percent over the past two weeks, the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday. There were 496,000 initial jobless claims filed in the week ended Feb. 20, up 22,000 from a revised 474,000 the previous week. The four-week moving average of initial claims was 473,750, up 6,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 467,750.

Durable Goods Orders Rise in January
Orders for U.S. durable goods rose in January, climbing 3 percent based on surging demand for transportation equipment, the U.S. Department of Commerce reported on Thursday.

New orders for manufactured durable goods last month increased by $5.2 billion to reach a total of $175.7 billion, the second consecutive monthly increase, including a 1.9 percent gain in December. However, excluding transportation equipment, which has been up four of the last five months, new orders actually declined 0.6 percent in January. Excluding defense goods, new orders increased by 1.6 percent.

Durable goods shipments declined by 0.2 percent in January, following four straight months of growth, while inventories continued a 13-month decline, dropping by $0.1 billion in January.

“The weakness and uncertainty of the nascent economic and manufacturing recovery was reflected in a disappointing report on demand for long-lasting manufactured goods in January,” Cliff Waldman, economist for the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI, said in an analysis of the durable goods report.

“Further, it continues to be evident that business confidence in this economic recovery vacillates,” Waldman continued. “Until the new expansion broadens both domestically and globally, a strong and sustained manufacturing recovery is questionable.”

Material-Handling Equipment Growth Expected in 2010
In October 2009, the Material Handling Industry of America (MHIA) forecast that the year would end with a total decline of equipment orders ranging from 35 percent to 38 percent. The final numbers indicate that orders for material handling equipment contracted 37.4 percent in 2009, and shipments contracted 34.4 percent last year.

In its latest Material Handling Equipment Manufacturing Forecast, the international trade association forecasts material-handling equipment orders will grow 6 percent to 8.5 percent in 2010. Shipments are expected to grow 1 percent to 2 percent this year.

WTO: Global Trade Dropped 12 Percent in 2009
World trade levels declined significantly in 2009, with global volume decreasing by 12 percent last year, the sharpest contraction since World War Two, Pascal Lamy, director general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), said in a speech to the European Policy Centre on Thursday.

The revised level of contraction was two percentage points higher than the WTO’s December estimate of a 10-percent drop in global trade for 2009.

“The main explanation for this freefall in trade has been the simultaneous reduction in aggregate demand across all major world economies. The drying up of trade finance during this period has also been a contributing factor,” Lamy explained. “To a much lesser degree, trade has been adversely affected by some instances of increased tariffs and domestic subsidies, new non-tariff measures and more anti-dumping actions.”

Although last year’s trade decline was more severe than expected, Lamy remained positive about the future economic outlook, citing how trade reform can strengthen existing markets and that increasing manufacturing exports can contribute to 160,000 new U.S. jobs in 2010.

“With the three biggest economies recovering fast, the world cannot be too far behind. And if there is a general uptick in global growth, global trade will go up for sure. It’s no wonder Director General Lamy could talk about 2010 trade in positive terms,” Forbes.com reported.