New orders for expensive U.S. manufactured goods jumped by the biggest amount in 16 months in April, the government reported Thursday, signaling that businesses and consumers are increasing their spending. The Commerce Department reported that new orders for durable goods—costly items expected to last at least three years—rose 1.9 percent last month from March, the biggest percentage advance since December 2007. New orders have risen in two of the three past months. Despite April's strong performance, durable-goods orders in the first four months of the year are down 27.3 percent from the same period a year ago. Excluding transportation orders, which vary widely month to month, new orders rose 0.8 percent in April after falling 2.7 percent the previous month. Orders for communications equipment, machinery, and fabricated metal products rose. Civilian aircraft and parts plunged 6.8 percent last month after surging 7.5 percent in March. Inventories of durable goods fell 0.8 percent in April, declining for the fourth consecutive month.
