U.S. factory orders saw a big jump in July that could pay dividends down the line for related exchange traded funds (ETFs).

New orders for items such as commercial aircraft, heavy machinery, iron and steel rose 1.3%, beating the 0.8% increase economists had been expecting, reports Martin Crutsinger for the Associated Press. It’s the fifth straight rise in orders.

While the U.S. economy has slowed down, foreign demand has made strong gains. Our weaker dollar has made things cheaper for those overseas, too. Aircraft made the biggest gains in July with a 28.1% jump. Durable goods orders rose 1.3%, while demand for iron and steel rose 5%. Orders for machinery rose up 4.1%, and construction machinery saw a 17.9% increase.

Experts are questioning how long the overseas demand will last, though, as economic weakness spreads to places like Europe and Japan and the dollar rebounds.

Also, Boeing (BA) is potentially facing a strike after union leaders recommended they reject the company’s “best and final” contract offer, reports Tim Klass for the Associated Press. Boeing already has an eight-year backlog of deliveries, and could lose as much as $100 million a day if a strike takes place.

ETFs that could benefit from the rise in factory orders:

• PowerShares Aerospace & Defense (PPA), down 14% year-to-date
• iShares Dow Jones U.S. Aerospace & Defense (ITA), down 12.7% year-to-date
• Market Vectors Steel (SLX), down 5.3% year-to-date

Tags: Aerospace & Defense, ITA, Metals & Mining, PPA, SLX, Steel

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