A report has shown that orders for US durable goods fell 2.4% in August, indicating a surprising weakness in the manufacturing sector.
The decrease following a revised surge of 4.8% in July, the Commerce Department said. Excluding transportation, new orders were down slightly. Excluding military-related orders, new orders decreased 2.4%.
The drop contrasted with market expectations of an overall 0.4% increase. Manufacturing has been leading the US recovery from recession, although some analysts say this is largely due to rebuilding of factory inventories instead of growing consumer demand.
Durable goods are those likely to last three years or more, such as cars and appliances, and represent a key segment of the manufacturing sector. The monthly report on durable goods is subject to volatility due to big orders for aircraft and military equipment. Excluding defence and transport, orders were down 0.4% in August.
Separate Commerce Department figures showed that US new home sales edged higher in August by 0.7% for a fifth consecutive monthly increase.
Sales of new single-family homes rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 429,000. That was below market forecasts of a level of 440,000, however, and 3.4% lower than the level of a year earlier.
The data suggested a sluggish recovery for a sector that has been battered since the collapse of the US housing bubble that led to a global financial crisis. Prices fell as builders offered discounts to clear out inventories of unsold properties in August. The median sales prices for new homes fell 9.4% from a month ago to $195,200 and 11.7% from a year earlier.
