Orders for Long-Lasting Goods Rose Modestly in April
May 25 2022 - 9:36AM
Dow Jones News
By David Harrison
Orders for long-lasting goods such as appliances, computers and
cars rose in April, driven by an increase in new aircraft
orders.
New orders for products meant to last at least three years
increased by 0.4% to a seasonally adjusted $265.3 billion in April
following a revised 0.6% rise in March, the Commerce Department
said Wednesday. April marked the sixth increase in seven
months.
Nondefense aircraft and parts orders were up 4.3%, rebounding
from an 8.1% decline in March.
Excluding defense, orders of durable goods rose 0.3%.
Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a
0.7% increase for overall durable goods orders.
Strong consumer spending has boosted manufacturing demand,
despite ongoing supply-chain disruptions due to the war in Ukraine
and Covid-related shutdowns in China, which have contributed to
rising prices.
But a pullback in manufacturing orders and output could be
coming. Major retailers such as Best Buy Co. reported weakening
sales this month, which could signal a consumer pullback.
The Commerce Department will report April consumer-spending
figures Friday morning.
New orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft,
so-called core capital goods, a closely watched proxy for business
investment, rose 0.3% to $73.1 billion in April compared with the
previous month.
Write to David Harrison at david.harrison@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 25, 2022 09:21 ET (13:21 GMT)
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