Factory Orders Show Upward Spike In December (GE, STX)

New investment in business equipment gave a fillip to factory orders in the month of December.

The Bookings showed an increase of 1 percent. According to the report released by the Commerce Department, manufacturers are likely to keep boosting production to avoid further declines in inventories. Yet another report from the Institute of Supply Management showed that manufacturing in January grew at the fastest pace in five years.

Seagate Technology (NASDAQ: STX) reported sales of record at 49.9 million units. Its sales rose by 33 percent during the quarter ended on January 1. Similarly, General Electric (NYSE: GE) said that its backlog of equipment and service orders rose by $1 billion during the fourth quarter.