Demand for key capital goods made in America soared in September, with orders and shipments soaring, an indication that the pace of economic growth picked up in the third quarter.

Orders for non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, considered a proxy for business spending, rose 0.9 percent, matching the upwardly revised 0.9 percent increase a month earlier, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.

Economists had forecast a slowdown from the previously reported 0.4 percent growth in August to a rise of 0.2 percent in September. Shipments of core capital goods also rose 0.9 percent.

The durable goods report was delayed several weeks by the 43-day shutdown of the federal government that began in October.

Orders for raw metals and fabricated metals products rose at a very st

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