Factory Orders Down for 4th Straight Month

Orders received by U.S. factories fell for the fourth straight month in February, the Commerce Department said Tuesday, drawing a warning from the nation’s manufacturers that recession may drag on longer than most experts predict.

The Commerce Department said orders fell 0.5% after a revised 1.6% decrease in January and declines of 0.4% in December and 5.8% in November, the Commerce Department said.

“The decline in manufactured goods orders, although somewhat less serious than the previous month’s figures, confirms that that economy is still deep in recession,” said Gordon Richards, an economist for the National Assn. of Economists.

Some private analysts expect the economy to resume growing in the April-June quarter after contracting in the final three months of 1990 and the first quarter this year, but Richards said that might be optimistic.

The February fall was steeper than expected by economists, who had forecast a 0.3% decline from January levels. The January drop was first reported as 1.7%.

Factory Orders Total new orders in billions of dollars, seasonally adjusted 1990: Feb., ‘90: 236.0 1991: Jan., ‘91: 234.5 Feb., ‘91: 233.2 Source: U.S. Dept. of Commerce