Factory Orders Fall Again in September

Washington, DC, Nov. 4, 2008--U.S. factory orders fell sharply in September for the second straight month, another sign that the manufacturing sector is slowing at a rapid pace.

Factory orders fell 2.5% in September after falling a revised 4.3% in August, the Commerce Department estimated Tuesday.
 
Economists had been looking for a drop of about 0.2% in factory orders.
 
Orders for durable goods such as airplanes, computers and washing machines increased a revised 0.9% in September, up slightly from 0.8% estimated a week ago.

Durables were pushed higher by a 29.7% gain in orders for new civilian aircraft. Overall transportation orders rose 6.5% in September.

Excluding transportation, factory orders dropped a record 3.7% in September.

Meanwhile, shipments of factory goods fell 2.8% in September, the second straight monthly drop. Inventories fell 0.7% in September, which was the first drop in five months.