Orders for US durable goods edge past forecasts in April

Orders for goods made to last more than three years edged past forecasts on the back of stronger demand for military aircraft.

New orders for durable goods grew by 0.7% month-on-month to reach $238.7bn, according to the Department of Commerce, thanks in large part to a 2.4% jump in orders for transportation equipment.

That missed forecasts for growth of 1.2%.

In comparison to a year ago, orders were 3.4% higher.

Offsetting weaker-than-expected orders in March, February's print was revised higher to show a rise of 2.3% on the month, versus a preliminary estimate of a gain of 1.8%.

Excluding transportation, total new orders slipped by 0.2%, while excluding defence they were up by 0.1%.

Transportation orders were boosted, in part, by a 26.1% jump in orders for defence aircraft and parts.

Shipments of durable goods, which had increased in four of the past five months, were up 0.2% to $239.8bn.

Orders for non-defence capital goods excluding aircraft, a key indicator of underlying demand for investment goods, grew by 0.2% to $65.0bn.