In the durable-goods category, orders for transportation equipment surged 12.5 percent, to $27.2 billion.

New orders for durable goods surged 2 percent in November, marking the longest streak of gains since 1987.

In still another report on the economy today, orders to the nation's factories for long-lived goods, from camcorders to artillery shells, surged 3.4 percent in November.

Japan also reported today that orders at its 50 largest construction concerns in July surged 19.4 percent from the July 1986 level.

But without transportation, orders surged by 1.7 percent in September, almost six times the forecast of 0.3 percent growth.

Retail sales in Germany jumped 2.7 percent in January, while orders for machinery surged.

And orders surged to $460 million this year - with $500 million projected in 1996 - from just $65 million in 1991.

Production, new orders and export orders all surged.

Total durable goods orders rose nine-tenths of 1 percent in December, but civilian orders surged 6.9 percent.

But last month, orders surged by 10.7 percent for big-ticket items like dishwashers and cars that are supposed to last at least three years or more.