"The number isn't as bad as it looks"
- Paul Edelstein, director of financial economics at IHS Global Insight
The number of orders placed with U.S. factories increased less than forecast in December, indicating a drop in non-durable goods that partly countered gains in construction equipment and computers. The report by the Commerce Department showed that bookings climbed only 1.8% after a revised 0.3% drop in November, while analysts expected a 2.3% gain. At the same time, the demand for core capital durable goods dropped 0.3%, while orders for durable goods, items expected to last at least three years, rose 4.3%, below expectations for a 4.6% increase. Orders for non-durable goods, such as petroleum products, chemicals and paper, declined 0.3% in December after a 1% drop in November.
"The number isn't as bad as it looks," said Paul Edelstein, director of financial economics at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts. "This really was a story about a payback in national defense spending. Consumer spending growth picked up, fixed investment was fairly strong."
"Once you get beyond the weak headline, the rest of the report was good enough to satisfy expectations," said Neil Dutta, head of economics at Renaissance Macro Research.
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