With orders for transportation equipment pulling back sharply, the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods tumbled by much more than expected in the month of February.
The Commerce Department said durable goods orders slumped by 2.2 percent in February after jumping by 1.6 percent in January. Economists had expected durable goods orders to dip by 0.5 percent.
Excluding the steep drop in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders fell by 0.6 percent in February after climbing by 0.8 percent in January. The decrease surprised economists, who had expected ex-transportation orders to rise by 0.6 percent.
