Gauge of U.S. business spending plans, durable goods orders fall in Oct

A gauge of planned U.S. business spending on capital goods unexpectedly fell in October and new orders for long-lasting manufactured goods were down, pointing to a loss of momentum in factory activity. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, dropped 1.2 percent last month. It was the second month of declines after orders for these so-called core capital goods fell 1.4 percent in September. It could also be an indication that a 16-day partial government shutdown last month hurt business confidence.

via Business News - Yahoo Finance http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gauge-u-business-spending-plans-133719119.html