Factory Orders Tumble 2.5 Percent

Orders to factories for big-ticket durable goods took their biggest tumble in 10 months in February, pulled down by falling demand in the volatile aircraft and military sectors.

“Excluding those two sectors, we actually saw an increase in the month and a steady rise in orders over the past six months,” said Mark Zandi, an economist with Regional Financial Associates in West Chester, Pa.

“That indicates that, although manufacturing is weak, it will see some improvement as we go through the year,” he added.

In its report, the Commerce Department said durable goods orders fell 2.5 percent, to a seasonally adjusted $165 billion. It was the steepest decline since a 4.6 percent drop last April.

Transportation orders plunged 11.6 percent, the largest drop since they declined 11.8 percent last October. They had slipped 3 percent in January after spiking up 12.3 percent a month earlier.

The report attributed the loss mainly to aircraft, saying demand for automobiles posted a small increase. But excluding transportation, orders rose 0.7 percent.