U.S. Factory Orders Faltered In November

By Agence France-Presse Fresh orders for manufactured goods from U.S. factories fell in November after bursting a 15-month record in the prior month, seasonally adjusted data showed Jan. 6. Orders dropped 1.4% to $336.9 billion; however, the decline was not as bad as Wall Street had feared. Economists had expected orders to fall by 1.5%. Demand for durable goods -- big-ticket items such as cars and washing machines -- decelerated as orders fell 2.5% in November, according to the Commerce Department. That figure is revised down from a previously published 3.1% decrease. Transportation orders sank 1.3%, with a 13.9% fall in civilian aircraft orders. Military aircraft orders slumped 9.1%. Computers and electronic products orders declined 10.7%, compared with a 2.5% gain in the prior month. Orders for non-durable goods such as food, drink and tobacco slipped a modest 0.2%. Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2004