Rise in durable goods orders points to a growing economy

It can be said that as washers and dryers go, so goes the U.S. economy. And currently, the appliance trend is heading in the right direction. U.S. durable goods orders rose 1.0 percent in September and the closely followed rate that excludes transportation roders also increased 0.9 percent, the U.S. Commerce Department announced Wednesday.

It was the fourth increase in durable goods orders in the past six months -- and the gain over the past half-year provides additional evidence that an economic recovery is underway. Most economists expect the U.S. economy to show that an expansion started in the third quarter, with GDP increasing 2.5 percent to 3.0 percent. Commerce will release third-quarter GDP data on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET.