US factory orders post biggest gain in 11 months in April

Last edited Wed Jun 3, 2026, 02:29 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: Reuters

US factory orders post biggest gain in 11 months in April

By Reuters
June 3, 2026 10:38 AM EDT Updated 25 mins ago


Employees work on the production floor of the General Stamping & Metalworks building in South Bend, Indiana, U.S., March 23, 2026. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska/File Photo

WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - New orders for U.S. factory goods posted their biggest increase in nearly a year in April amid strong demand for commercial ​aircraft and a range of other goods. ... Factory orders surged 4.8%, ‌the largest rise since May 2025, after an upwardly revised 1.8% advance in March, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had ​forecast orders increasing 4.6% after a previously reported 1.5% rise in ​March.

Orders increased 6.0% year-on-year in April. Manufacturing, which accounts for ⁠9.4% of the economy, is being underpinned by an artificial intelligence ​spending boom, though the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran poses a downside risk. ... The ​three-month conflict has severely disrupted the shipping of commodities and raised prices of goods like energy, aluminum and fertilizers. An Institute for Supply Management survey on Monday showed ​supplier delivery performance slowed for a sixth consecutive month in May, keeping ​prices for inputs elevated.

Commercial aircraft orders soared 165.9% after declining 23.0% in March. Boeing ‌reported ⁠on its website that it had received 136 orders in April, most of them for more expensive models. That number compared to 33 orders in March. ... Orders for primary metals increased 2.0%, while bookings for fabricated metal ​products jumped 3.5%. ​Orders for machinery ⁠rose 0.7%. Electrical equipment, appliances and components orders climbed 0.5%. There were also increases in orders for motor ​vehicle bodies, parts and trailers. But orders for computers ​and electronic ⁠products dropped 0.7%, with computers falling 2.5%.

The Census Bureau also reported that orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, which are seen as a measure ⁠of ​business spending plans on equipment, declined 1.0% ​in April instead of 1.1% as estimated last week. Shipments of these so-called core capital goods ​rose 0.4% as previously reported.

Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-factory-orders-post-biggest-gain-11-months-april-2026-06-03/

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From the source:

https://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/current/index.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, June 03, 2026
Monthly Full Report on Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, & Orders
June 03, 2026
CB26-93



New orders for manufactured goods in April, up five of the last six months, increased $30.1 billion or 4.8 percent to $662.7 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 1.8 percent March increase. Shipments, up six of the last seven months, increased $6.3 billion or 1.0 percent to $641.0 billion. This followed a 1.5 percent March increase. Unfilled orders, up twenty-one of the last twenty-two months, increased $26.8 billion or 1.7 percent to $1,569.0 billion. This followed a 0.2 percent March increase. The unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 6.95, up from 6.88 in March. Inventories, up seven consecutive months, increased $2.4 billion or 0.3 percent to $959.1 billion. This followed a 0.7 percent March increase. The inventories-to-shipments ratio was 1.50, down from 1.51 in March.
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