Durable Goods Orders, Shipments Rise

U.S. orders for and shipments of durable goods rose more than expected in April, according to U.S. Census Bureau data out today (baha).

What’s going on: Durable goods orders, up for three consecutive months, increased 0.7%, or $1.9 billion, in April, coming in at $284.1 billion.

Shipments of durable goods also rose, by 1.2%, or $3.4 billion, landing at $285.7 billion.
March’s orders rose more than April’s—up 0.8%—but economists had forecast April’s to decline 0.9% (Seeking Alpha, subscription).

Unfilled orders and inventory: Unfilled orders for durable goods rose 0.2%, or $3.1 billion, in April, to $1,401.01 billion. This follows a 0.3% increase in March.

Inventories of manufactured durable goods increased 0.1%, or $0.6 billion, to $528.5 billion, after virtually flat March numbers.

The details: “Transportation equipment led the upbeat trend, jumping 1.2% or $1.1 billion in comparison to the previous month, coming in at $96.2 billion. Excluding transportation, new orders grew 0.4% in the reported month.”