EmailEconomic
Last Update: 05-Jun-13 10:23 ET
Factory Orders
Highlights
- Factory orders rose 1.0% in April after declining an upwardly revised 4.7% (from 4.9%) in March. The Briefing.com consensus expected orders to increase 1.6%.
Key Factors
- Overall, the report was not too different from expectations. Durable goods growth was strong on solid demand from just about every sector. Some of those gains, however, were offset by falling nondurable goods prices.
- Durable goods orders were revised up from 3.3% in the advance release to 3.5%. These orders fell 5.9% in March.
- Excluding transportation, durable goods orders increased 1.5% in April, up from an originally reported 1.3%.
- Nondurable goods orders fell 1.0% in April after declining 3.5% in March. Much of the decline was due to lower oil prices as petroleum refinery orders fell 4.6%.
- Orders of nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft were unrevised and increased by 1.2% in April. Shipments, which factor into second quarter GDP, fell 1.3%. That was slightly better than the 1.5% decline reported in the advance release and will lead to an upward revision to our second quarter forecast.
Big Picture
- Unfilled orders remain on an upward trend. Continued growth in these orders will be necessary if manufacturers are going to keep production levels steady amid fluctuating demand.
| Category | APR | MAR | FEB | JAN | DEC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Factory Orders | 1.0% | -4.7% | 3.9% | -2.4% | 2.2% |
| Less Defense | 0.5% | -4.0% | 3.5% | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| Durable Goods | 3.5% | -5.9% | 6.4% | -6.1% | 5.1% |
| Nondurable Goods | -1.0% | -3.5% | 1.9% | 0.9% | -0.3% |
| Unfilled Factory Orders | 0.3% | -0.6% | 0.9% | -0.2% | 1.0% |
| Factory Shipments | -0.7% | -1.5% | 1.3% | 0.1% | 0.0% |
| Factory Inventories | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.1% |
| Inventory/Shipment Ratio | 1.31 | 1.30 | 1.28 | 1.29 | 1.29 |
