New orders for big-ticket manufactured goods dropped more than expected in May.
A report from the U.S. Commerce Department showed that durable goods orders fell 2.2 percent in May.
This followed a revised 3.3 percent increase in the previous month. Economists had expected a drop, but they had generally predicted a more modest retreat.
Durable goods are those items meant to last at least 3 years. Tracking orders for the category is considered a good gauge of the health of the heavy manufacturing sector.
The drop in durable goods orders were impacted by a sharp drop in orders for defense aircraft and parts. This segment alone saw a 34 percent drop from the previous month.
Excluding the transportation sector, durable goods orders were down just 0.3 percent.
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