U.S. Factory Orders Down More Than Expected in July

Orders at U.S. factories recorded a sharp decline in July, driven by a drop in aircraft orders.

Orders for manufactured goods fell 3.3% to a seasonally adjusted $466.4 billion in July, marking the steepest drop since August 2014, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had predicted orders would fall 3.2%.

Orders in June were revised to a 3.2% increase from an initial estimate of a 3% increase.

Excluding transportation, orders were up 0.5% and have increased for two consecutive months. Excluding defense, another volatile category, orders fell 3.7%.

Orders for nondurable goods, which include products like fuel and drugs, increased 0.4% to $237.4 billion.

The Commerce Department report on factory orders can be accessed at http://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3.

Write to Sarah Chaney at sarah.chaney@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 05, 2017 10:20 ET (14:20 GMT)