Survey: US factories expanded for 5th straight month in July

[...] U.S. factory activity overall has recovered after being pounded by economic weakness overseas and a strong dollar, which made their goods costlier in foreign markets.

"Overall, this suggests that the manufacturing sector is continuing to gradually recover," Andrew Hunter, U.S. economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a research note.

[...] he added that continuing global economic weakness means that "a strong recovery in manufacturing activity remains unlikely in the near term."

The Commerce Department reported last week that orders to U.S. factories for long-lasting manufactured goods fell in June by the largest amount in nearly two years.