New orders for manufactured goods leaped 2.1% in March to $476.5 billion, after a 0.1% decline in February. The February number previously was estimated as a 0.2% increase.
Compared with a year ago, factory orders were down 4.8% in March. Stripping out transportation, which can be volatile month-over-month, factory orders were flat in March compared to February.
Transportation equipment orders surged 13.5%, led by a 103.0% jump in defense aircraft and a 30.6% increase in commercial aircraft.
Orders for durable goods, typically goods that last more than three years and which represent about half of all factory orders, rose 4.4% to $241.2 billion. In February they had fallen 1.4%.
Nondurable goods, such as food and textiles, slipped 0.3% to $235.3 billion.
Manufacturing has been struggling, with exports hit by the strong dollar and US consumer spending tepid.
Source: AFP via I-Net Bridge
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