2018.03.0610:15:00UTC+00U.S. Factory Orders Slump Slightly More Than Expected In January

New orders for U.S. manufactured goods slumped by slightly more than expected in the month of January, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday.

The Commerce Department said factory orders tumbled by 1.4 percent in January after jumping by an upwardly revised 1.8 percent in December.

Economists had expected factory orders to drop by 1.3 percent compared to the 1.7 percent spike originally reported for the previous month.

The sharp pullback in factory orders was primarily due to a steep decline in orders for durable goods, which plunged by 3.6 percent in January after surging up by 2.7 percent in December.

Orders for transportation equipment led the decrease in durable goods orders, plunging by 10.0 percent in January after jumping by 6.6 percent in December.

On the other hand, the report said orders for non-durable goods climbed by 0.8 percent in January following a 0.9 percent increase in the previous month.

The Commerce Department also said shipments of manufactured goods rose by 0.6 percent, while inventories of manufactured goods increased by 0.3 percent.

The inventories-to-shipments ratio subsequently came in at 1.35 in January, unchanged from the previous month.