Investing.com - U.S. durable goods orders fell unexpectedly in February, while core orders also slumped, fuelling concerns 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, declined by a seasonally adjusted 1.4% last month, compared to expectations for a gain of 0.4%.
Orders for durable goods in January were revised down to a 2.0% gain from a previously reported increase of 2.8%.
Durable goods are typically bulky or heavy products designed to last at three years, such as trains, planes and automobiles.
Core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, inched down by a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in February, disappointing forecasts for a 0.3% gain.
Core durable goods orders fell 0.7% in January, whose figure was revised from previously reported flat reading.
Orders for core capital goods, a key barometer of private-sector business investment, declined by 1.4% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.3% increase and after falling 0.1% in January.
Shipments of core capital goods, a category used to calculate quarterly economic growth, eased up 0.2% in February, below forecasts for a 0.3% gain, after falling 0.4% in the preceding month.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1009 from around 1.0994 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.4950 from 1.4927 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 119.30 from 119.45 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 96.74, compared to 96.91 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a modestly higher open. The Dow futures pointed to a gain of 0.1%, the S&P 500 futures rose 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures tacked on 0.15%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,197.30 a troy ounce, compared to $1,195.70 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $47.87 a barrel from $47.75 earlier.