New orders for manufactured durable goods to U.S. factories increased by 3.4 percent in March, marking the fourth gain in the last five months, the Commerce Department reported on Wednesday.

The March gain in orders for durable goods and items such as computers and airplanes, expected to last for at least three years, followed an increase of 2.4 percent in February and a decline of 8.8 percent in January.

The 3.4 percent increase in March was led by an advance of 8.0 percent in demand for transportation products, which accounts for more than one quarter of total durable goods orders.

Demand for commercial aircrafts and their spare parts were up 37.6 percent in March. The big gain came after orders in this category had surged by 101.6 percent in February, reflecting a pickup in demand at Boeing Co.

Orders for autos and their spare parts rose by 3.3 percent in March, compared to an increase of 0.4 percent in February.

Excluding transportation, new orders for durable goods increased by 1.5 percent in March, rebounding from a 0.4 percent drop in this category in February.

Orders for primary metals such as steel rose by 2.5 percent in March while demand for machinery increased by 4.2 percent. However, demand for computers and electronic products was down 0.1 percent.

Demand for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched guide to business investment plans, jumped 4.7 percent in March, the best showing since a 7.9 percent rise in September 2004. That was compared to a drop of 2.3 percent in February.