American Manufactured Goods Orders Down to 12-Month Low in April

U.S. orders for manufactured durable goods in April fell to $246.2 billion in April to mark the first decline in 12 months, the Census Bureau reported.

• The latest figure reflects a 1.3% or $3.2 billion decline following the 1.3% increase in March.
• The decrease was led by orders for transportation equipment which fell by 6.7% or $4.9 billion to $68.9 billion, marking the second straight month of contractions.
• Excluding transportation, new orders grew by 1.0%.
• New orders would have been virtually unchanged if defense were not included. Defense new orders fell $3.2 billion during the month.
• Shipments, unfilled orders, inventories, and capital goods all recorded upward movements for the month.
• New orders for March were revised upward to $487.8 billion from $486.6 billion.
• Figures for shipments and unfilled orders for March were likewise adjusted higher, while total inventories were revised lower.