Orders to US factories down 1.7 per cent in August

Washington: Orders to US factories fell in August by the largest amount in eight months, led by a drop in demand for commercial airplanes and weakness in a key category that tracks business investment spending. Factory orders declined 1.7 percent in August after a slight gain of 0.2 percent in July, the Commerce Department reported Friday. It was the biggest setback since orders dropped 3.7 percent in December. Demand in a key category that serves as a proxy for business investment slipped 0.8 percent in August, following solid gains in June and July.