Factory orders in two-month slump

New orders have risen for 12 of the past 15 months, but the two-month downturn adds to a growing set of discouraging data. On Tuesday, the Commerce Department said consumer spending, personal incomes and disposable incomes were all flat in June.

The government said factory orders dropped 1.2 percent in June, falling by $5.1 billion to $406.4 billion. Shipments, also down in May, dropped by 0.8 percent to $411.2 billion.

Inventories dropped 0.1 percent to $520 billion after falling 0.4 percent in May.

Breaking down new orders data, the bureau said durable goods orders declined 1.2 percent to $190.4 billion while non-durable goods orders fell 1.3 percent to $216.1 billion.

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