WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- U.S. durable goods orders fell in September, but the decline fell short of expectations, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.
Economists expected new orders for goods that last three years or more to drop 0.9 percent. However, commerce said orders fell by 0.8 percent or $1.5 billion to $200.3 billion.
It was the third month of the past four to see orders decline. New orders have also dropped in eight months of the past 12.
For September, a 7.5 percent drop in transportation items led the push downward. With the big ticket items of trains, trucks, planes and ships excluded from the data, orders actually rose 1.7 percent.
That far outpaced the consensus forecast, which called for a 0.4 percent increase with transportation items excluded.
