US Durable-Goods Orders Fell 2.1% in April
May 24 2019 - 09:00AM
Dow Jones News
By Paul Kiernan and David Harrison
WASHINGTON--Orders for long-lasting factory goods declined in
April as business investment cooled while orders for civilian
aircraft fell sharply amid problems with a major Boeing Co.
airliner model.
Orders for durable goods--products designed to last at least
three years, such as cars and appliances--fell 2.1% from the prior
month to a seasonally adjusted $248.4 billion in April, the
Commerce Department said Friday.
Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected a 2%
drop in the month.
Orders for March were revised down to a 1.7% increase from a
previous estimate of a 2.6% rise. Through the first four months of
2019, demand for durable products was up 2% from the same period a
year earlier.
A closely watched proxy for business investment, new orders for
nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft, slipped 0.9% in April
after rising a revised 0.3% in March. That measure rose 2.6% in the
first four months of 2019 from a year earlier, reflecting moderate
gains in capital expenditures.
Friday's report showed orders in the volatile civilian aircraft
category plunging 25% in April, likely reflecting a March decision
by global aviation authorities to ground Boeing's 737 MAX airliner
model following two fatal crashes. Acting Federal Aviation
Administration chief Daniel Elwell told reporters at a news
conference Wednesday that he couldn't predict when the fleet would
be back in the air.
New orders for motor vehicles and parts fell a seasonally
adjusted 3.4% in April from March, while durable-goods orders
excluding transportation were flat.
Orders for defense capital goods advanced 4.8% last month.
Excluding defense, durable-goods orders were down 2.5%.
The Commerce Department's durable goods orders report can be
found at http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3.
Write to Paul Kiernan at paul.kiernan@wsj.com and David Harrison
at david.harrison@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 24, 2019 08:45 ET (12:45 GMT)
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