WASHINGTON - New orders for U.S. manufactured goods rebounded in April but were not nearly strong enough to wipe out March's plunge, the government reported Wednesday.
Factory orders rose 1% in April, the Commerce Department said, well below analyst expectations of a 1.6% rise.
The department revised the March contraction higher, to 4.7% from an initial estimate of 4%.
In April, unfilled orders rose 0.3% and inventories increased 0.2%, while shipments fell 0.7%.
Transportation equipment orders led the monthly gain. The often-volatile orders soared 8.4% on sharp gains for defense and commercial aircraft.
Excluding transportation, new factory orders fell 0.1%.
On a 12-month basis, April orders were up 0.2%.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2013
