Factories orders up 1.4 percent in March
WASHINGTON (AP) - May 2, 2008 The Commerce Department reported Friday that orders placed with
U.S. manufacturers rose 1.4 percent in March. That was an
improvement from the 0.9 percent dip reported in February and the
2.3 percent drop in January.
The latest snapshot of manufacturing activity was better than
many economists were forecasting. They were predicting a smaller,
0.2 percent rise in orders.
Most of the pickup in March came from "nondurable" goods - a
broad category including food, paper products, and petroleum and
coal products. Orders for nondurables rose 2.6 percent in March,
following a 1.1 percent drop in February. Higher prices factored
into the rise.
Meanwhile, demand for "durable" goods, big-ticket items,
including airplanes, machinery and cars, edged up 0.1 percent in
March, compared with a 0.6 percent decline in the previous month.
A more forward-looking report, released Thursday, said that
manufacturing activity contracted in April. The Institute for
Supply Management said its manufacturing barometer held steady at
48.6 last month, unchanged from March. A reading below 50 indicates
contraction, while a reading above 50 signals growth.
Factories - especially those making things related to housing -
have been hit hard by the collapse of the once high-flying housing
market. Demand at home for building materials and furnishings has
taken a hit.
On the other hand, U.S. exports of goods and services has been
thriving, one of the main reasons why the economy managed to keep
afloat in the first three months of this year. The falling value of
the dollar has made U.S. merchandise less expensive and thus more
attractive to foreign buyers.
Still, U.S. factories are managing to meet customers' demands
with fewer workers.
A Labor Department report released Friday showed that
manufacturers continued to shed jobs, cutting 46,000 in April
alone.