Orders of major U.S. manufactured goods slipped in July according to government data released Thursday, as a boost in civilian aircraft orders faded.
New orders for durable goods fell 5.2% from June to July to $285.9 billion, according to Commerce Department data, a slightly bigger drop than analysts had expected.
The slide comes on the back of a 43.6% plunge in nondefense aircraft and parts, while new orders ticked up 0.5% overall when the transportation segment was excluded.
Despite the dramatic figure, "this merely reverses the June spike, caused by a surge in civilian aircraft orders at the Paris Air Show, which was not repeated in July," said analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics in a recent report.
"The big picture here is that the re-opening boost to civilian aircraft demand has faded," they added.
Elsewhere, orders of motor vehicles and parts rose 0.8% last month, according to the Commerce Department.
Fresh orders of nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft edged up 0.1% -- a key figure to watch as such orders factor in to the equipment investment component of GDP, said Pantheon economists.
The near-flat reading comes as the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes continue feeding through the economy, as policymakers work to ease demand and cool inflation sustainably.
Copyright 2023, Agence France-Presse
