Demand for Business Equipment in U.S. Declines in April

Companies placed fewer orders for computers, machinery and other capital equipment in April for a second month, indicating manufacturing in the U.S. is cooling.

Bookings for non-military goods excluding aircraft fell 1.9 percent after dropping 2.2 percent in March, the first back-to- back decline in a year, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Other reports showed claims for jobless benefits were little changed last week and consumer confidence hovered near a four-month low.

“We can’t seem to really gather any steam,” said Julia Coronado, chief economist for North America at BNP Paribas in New York. “From consumer spending to hiring to manufacturing activity, everything is kind of moderate and OK but not particularly spectacular or satisfying.”

Slowdowns in Europe and parts of Asia combined with a cooling in business spending in the U.S. after the reduction of a government tax credit this year may restrain manufacturing. At the same time, Americans are buying cars at the fastest pace in four years, creating a rebound in auto making that is rippling through the economy.

Applications for jobless benefits decreased by 2,000 to 370,000 in the week ended May 19, in line with the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, according to data from the Labor Department.

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