Latest news with #factoryorders
Al Jazeera
3 days ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
US factory orders slump in April as tariff anticipation spending fades
Orders from United States factories have tumbled in April after a surge in March when businesses had front-loaded purchases in anticipation of tariffs. New orders for US manufactured goods dropped by 3.7 percent on a monthly basis, worse than economists had expected, according to Census Bureau data released on Tuesday. Economists polled by the Reuters news agency expected a 3.1 percent drop. Dow Jones forecast a 3.3 percent drop. On an annual basis, however, factory orders rose by 2 percent. April's report is in sharp contrast to the 3.4 percent increase in March, which topped five straight months of increases. Manufacturing, which accounts for 10.2 percent of the US economy, has been put under pressure by President Donald Trump's aggressive tariffs. Trump sees the tariffs as a tool to raise revenue to offset his promised extension of tax cuts and to revive a long-declining industrial base, a feat that economists argued was impossible in the short term because of labour shortages and other structural issues. Orders in the transportation sector fell 17.1 percent, led by a sharp drop in the commercial aircraft sector. Aircraft orders fell by 51.5 percent in April. Orders for motor vehicles, parts and trailers dropped 0.7 percent. Electrical equipment, appliances and component manufacturing fell by 0.3 percent. But manufacturing for computers and other electronic products actually grew by 1 percent. Machinery orders also rose 0.6 percent. Excluding transportation, which led the surge in March orders, orders fell 0.5 percent, matching March's decline of non-transportation goods. The government also reported that orders for nondefence capital goods excluding aircraft, a measure of business spending plans on equipment, decreased 1.5 percent in April rather than 1.3 percent as estimated last month. Shipments of these so-called core capital goods fell by an unrevised 0.1 percent, or $1.8bn. An Institute for Supply Management survey showed manufacturing contracted for a third straight month in May and suppliers took the longest time in nearly three years to deliver inputs to factories.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
US factory orders slump in April
WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - New orders for U.S.-manufactured goods dropped sharply in April and business spending on equipment appeared to have lost momentum at the start of the second quarter as the boost from front-loading of purchases ahead of tariffs faded. Factory orders fell 3.7% after an unrevised 3.4% jump in March, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Tuesday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast factory orders declining 3.1%. They rose 2.0% on a year-on-year basis in April. Manufacturing, which accounts for 10.2% of the economy, has been pressured by President Donald Trump's aggressive tariffs. An Institute for Supply Management survey on Monday showed manufacturing contracted for a third straight month in May and suppliers took the longest time in nearly three years to deliver inputs to factories. Trump sees the tariffs as a tool to raise revenue to offset his promised tax cuts and to revive a long-declining industrial base, a feat that economists argued was impossible in the short term because of labor shortages and other structural issues. Commercial aircraft orders plunged 51.5% in April. Orders for motor vehicles, parts and trailers dropped 0.7%, helping to depress transportation equipment orders by 17.1%. Orders for computers and electronic products gained 1.0%, while those for electrical equipment, appliances and components slipped 0.3%. Machinery orders rose 0.6%. Excluding transportation, orders fell 0.5%, matching March's decline. The government also reported that orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, which are seen as a measure of business spending plans on equipment, decreased 1.5% in April rather than 1.3% as estimated last month. Shipments of these so-called core capital goods fell by an unrevised 0.1%. Business spending on equipment rebounded sharply in the first quarter, largely driven by front-running of information processing equipment ahead of tariffs.
Wall Street Journal
07-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
German Factory Orders Jumped in March as Firms Braced for Tariffs
Bayer factory in Leverkusen. German factory orders climbed in March. Photo: ina fassbender/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images German factory orders climbed in March, reflecting the stockpiling of goods in the U.S. to get ahead of tariffs placed by the Trump administration in the following month. Manufacturing orders jumped 3.6% on month at the end of the first quarter, after flatlining in February, German statistics agency Destatis said Wednesday. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal expected a 1.0% uptick.
