Investing.com - U.S. orders for long lasting manufactured goods unexpectedly fell in October from a surprisingly strong reading in the prior month, dampening optimism over the U.S. economy, according to official data released on Wednesday.
Total durable goods orders, which include transportation items, decreased by 1.2% last month, the Commerce Department said, compared to economists' expectations for a gain of 0.3%.
That came after September’s strong surge of 2.2%, which was upwardly revised from an initial 2.0% advance.
Durable goods are typically bulky or heavy manufactured products designed to last at least three years.
Core durable goods orders, which exclude volatile transportation items, rose by 0.4% last month, missing expectations for a 0.5% increase.
September's core durable goods orders registered a 1.1% advance which was an upward revision from a 0.7% gain.
Durable orders excluding defense fell by 0.8% in October, compared to a forecast for a 0.9% increase. The prior month’s reading was revised from a 1.9% to a 2.4% advance.
Durable goods excluding defense and aircrafts slipped by 0.5% in October, compared to expectations for a 0.5% gain.
The previous month registered a rise of 2.1% which was an upward revision from an initial gain of 1.7%.
After the report, which was released simultaneously with weekly jobless claims, EUR/USD was trading at 1.1750 from around 1.1746 ahead of the publication; GBP/USD was at 1.3236 from 1.3230 earlier; while USD/JPY was at 111.96 from 111.98 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, traded at 93.74 compared to 93.77 prior to the release.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open. The Dow futures gained 38 points, or 0.16%, the S&P 500 futures rose 2 points, or 0.08%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures traded up 9 points, or 0.14%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,285.85 a troy ounce, compared to $1,286.00 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $57.81 a barrel from $57.91 earlier.