WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders at U.S. factories tumbled in July, dragged down by a sharp fall in orders for civilian aircraft.
The Commerce Departments reports that factory orders declined 3.3 percent in July, mostly because of a 19.2 percent drop in orders in transportation equipment. Orders for civilian aircraft — which can vary wildly from month to month — tumbled 70.8 percent in July after a 129.3 percent gain last month.
Excluding the transportation sector that includes aircraft, factory orders rose 0.5 percent in July.
A category that serves as a proxy for business investment posted a solid 1 percent gain after a small 0.1 percent decline in June.
In recent months, U.S. manufacturing has been benefiting from a stronger dollar and an improving global economy.