US factory orders fall for 4th month in row

(MENAFN- AFP) US factory orders fell for the fourth straight month in November, according to government data released Tuesday that provided further evidence of a slowdown in the manufacturing sector

New orders for manufactured goods dropped 0.7 percent, to $492.7 billion, following a 0.7 percent decline in October, the Commerce Department said.

Excluding transportation, which tends to be volatile month-over-month, new orders fell 0.6 percent in November.

The overall value of orders in November was the lowest since February 2014, when orders totaled $489.2. billion.

Year-on-year, November factory orders were up 3.4 percent.

The Commerce Department report echoed the fall reported Friday in the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing sector purchasing managers index for December, the second straight drop.