Durable Goods Orders Decline

Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket durable goods fell 0.6 percent in September, the first drop in four months. The development provided additional balm for jittery financial markets worried about potentially inflationary economic growth.

Orders for products expected to last more than three years totaled a seasonally adjusted $185.7 billion, down from $186.8 billion a month earlier, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

The fall was due to declines in demand for airplanes and motor vehicles and for electrical equipment, a category that includes items such as computer circuit boards and communications gear.

Many analysts had expected a drop of about 0.7 percent after orders shot up a revised 2.8 percent in August, a surge they said was not sustainable. The August advance was initially estimated to be 2.7 percent.