WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A government shutdown-delayed report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed new orders for U.S. manufactured goods rose by much less than anticipated in the month of December.
The Commerce Department said factory orders inched up by 0.1 percent in December after falling by a revised 0.5 percent in November.
Economists had expected orders to climb by 0.5 percent compared to the 0.6 percent decrease originally reported for the previous month.
The uptick in factory orders came as a jump in orders for durable goods was largely offset by a steep drop in orders for non-durable goods.
The report said durable goods orders surged up by 1.2 percent in December, largely reflecting a 3.2 percent spike in orders for transportation equipment.
On the other hand, the Commerce Department said non-durable goods orders slumped by 1.0 percent in December, extending the 2.0 percent nosedive seen in November.
Shipments of manufactured goods edged down by 0.2 percent in December after falling by 0.5 percent in November, while inventories of manufactured goods were virtually unchanged after slipping by 0.1 percent.
Subsequently, the report showed the inventories-to-shipments ratio in December was unchanged from the previous month at 1.35.
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