U.S. factory orders snapped back in May, rising 8.2% from the prior month and matching economists’ expectations, Commerce Department data showed. The increase followed a revised 3.9% drop in April and left total new orders at $642.0 billion, the highest level in six months. The headline rebound was powered by a 230.8% surge in commercial-aircraft bookings, reflecting Qatar Airways’ purchase of at least 150 jets from Boeing during President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf state. Motor-vehicle orders grew 0.8%, while computers, electronics and electrical equipment each logged gains of up to 1.5%. Business-investment bellwethers also improved. Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft—a proxy for future equipment spending—advanced 1.7%, and shipments of those items rose 0.4%. Separately, durable-goods orders were confirmed up 16.4%, with orders excluding transportation increasing 0.5%. Manufacturing, which accounts for roughly a tenth of the U.S. economy, is still contending with elevated input costs and the 145% tariff on Chinese imports that took effect in April. Even so, May’s broad-based gains suggest equipment demand held firm halfway through the second quarter despite trade and interest-rate headwinds.