A new report from the Commerce Department indicates that orders for factory goods in the U.S. rose 1.1 percent in the first quarter of 2014, Reuters reported Friday.Lucia Mutikani writes the department found inventories were up 0.1 percent in March, down from 0.7 percent in the previous month.
Unfilled factory orders and shipments also respectively increased 0.6 percent and 0.3 percent in March, according to the report.
Purchase agreements for manufactured goods with an estimated service life of up to three years gained a 2.9 percent hike, Reuters reports.
Mutikani writes non-defense product orders increased 3.5 percent.
