Orders for durable goods fall 4 percent

(April 25, 2012) -- "The drop in capital goods orders in March was disappointing and will likely raise concerns about the strength of business investment going forward," said Janzen. "With that said, the strengthening in the corresponding shipments measure in March and February following a disappointing drop in January suggests, if anything, some upside risk to our forecast that business capital investment rose at a 3.5 percent rate in the first quarter of 2012 following a 7.5 percent rise in the fourth quarter of 2011.