U.S. Factory Orders Plunged 10.3% in March

The severe damage to the U.S. economy from the coronavirus and social distancing was on display again on Monday when the Commerce Department reported a 10.3 percent decline in factory orders in March.

Durable goods orders crashed 14.7 percent, worse than the prior estimate of 14.4 percent, the Commerce Department said Monday. These include orders for cars and airplanes.

Excluding transportation, new orders decreased a milder 0.2 percent but that reflects a large amount military spending. Excluding defense, new orders decreased 15.8 percent.

Nondefense new orders for capital goods in March decreased $24.5 billion or 33.4 percent to $48.7 billion.
The sharp decline in March is notable because many manufacturers continued to operate until the final week of March or even into early April.