Factory orders in the U.S. increased for the fifth month in a row at the end of the first quarter and businesses’ capital spending increased as overseas sales increased on the weak dollar, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Tuesday, the Commerce Department reported that orders for manufactured goods in the U.S. added 3.0% in March from the prior month to reach $462.91 billion, which outpaced the 2% increase that economists had been expecting. The report also included an upwards revision of the 0.1% increase in factory orders in February to show a 0.7% gain that month.
The gain in manufacturing orders is being linked to strong orders from overseas markets as the dollar continues to weaken. Durable goods orders were up 2.9%, while orders excluding transportation added 2.6%, accelerating strongly from the 0.6% gain the previous month. Additionally, the capital investment was seen higher for the second consecutive month, with non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft added 4.1% in March.
