New Factory Orders Rise Unexpectedly in March

Washington, DC, May 4, 2010–New factory orders jumped unexpectedly in March, according to the Commerce Department.

Orders for manufactured goods rose 1.3% after an upwardly revised 1.3% gain in February, initially reported as a 0.6% rise, the Commerce Department said.

Economists were expecting a 0.1 percent decline.

When transportation orders were stripped out, orders surged 3.1 percent, the biggest gain in almost five years. Excluding defense, factory orders were up 1.3 percent.

Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, viewed as an indicator of business confidence, leaped 4.5 percent, the steepest increase since December 2007.