New orders for key U.S.-manufactured capital goods fell in April, suggesting business spending on equipment weakened at the start of the second quarter.

Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, tumbled 1.3% last month after an upwardly revised 0.3% gain in March, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Tuesday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast these so-called core capital goods orders dipping 0.1% after a previously reported 0.2% drop in March.