Orders for long-lasting goods such as appliances, computers and cars rose in April, driven by an increase in new aircraft orders.

New orders for products meant to last at least three years increased by 0.4% to a seasonally adjusted $265.3 billion in April following a revised 0.6% rise in March, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. April marked the sixth increase in seven months.

Nondefense aircraft and parts orders were up 4.3%, rebounding from an 8.1% decline in March.

Excluding defense, orders of durable goods rose 0.3%.

Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.7% increase for overall durable goods orders.

Strong consumer spending has boosted manufacturing demand, despite continuing supply-chain disruptions due to the war in Ukraine and Covid 19-related shutdowns in China, which have contributed to rising prices.

But a pullback in manufacturing orders and output could be coming. Major retailers such as Target Corp. and Best Buy Co. reported slower sales in some categories, which could be a sign that consumers are becoming wary of buying big-ticket items.

The Commerce Department will report April consumer spending figures Friday morning.

New orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft, so-called core capital goods, a closely watched proxy for business investment, rose 0.3% to $73.1 billion in April compared with the previous month.

Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics, said the report shows that business investment is beginning to slow as interest rates rise. But manufacturers are still working through a backlog of orders, which should prop up investment in the near term, he said.

“Economic activity is bending rather than breaking under the impact of higher rates,” he wrote in a note to clients.

Write to David Harrison at david.harrison@wsj.com