Investing.com - U.S. durable goods orders fell unexpectedly in May, while core orders also declined, dampening optimism over the strength of the economy, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the U.S. Commerce Department said that total durable goods orders, which include transportation items, fell by a seasonally adjusted 1% last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.2% increase.
Orders for durable goods in April were revised down to a 0.6% gain from a previously reported increase of 0.8%.
Durable goods are typically bulky or heavy products designed to last at three years, such as trains, computers or furniture.
Core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, eased down by a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in May, missing forecasts for a 0.4% gain. Core durable goods orders rose by 0.3% in April.
Orders for core capital goods, a key barometer of private-sector business investment, rose 0.7% last month, above expectations for a 0.5% increase and after falling 1.2% in April.
Shipments of core capital goods, a category used to calculate quarterly economic growth, inched up 0.4% in May, below forecasts for a 1% gain, after dropping 0.4% in the preceding month.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar added to losses against the euro, with EUR/USD rising 0.27% to trade at 1.3643, compared to 1.3617 ahead of the data.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open. The Dow futures pointed to a loss of 0.15%, the S&P 500 indicated a decline of 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 signaled a drop of 0.15%.