Showing persistent troubles for the manufacturing sector, new orders for manufactured goods fell 3.9% in December for the fifth consecutive month of declines -- the longest downward streak since comparable data was first published in 1992, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Economists polled by MarketWatch were looking for a decline of 3.3%. New orders for durable goods fell a revised 3%, compared with a prior estimate of a 2.6% decline. New orders for durable goods also reached five consecutive months of declines for the longest streak since comparable data has been published. Nondurable goods orders in December fell 4.8%, compared with 8.7% in the prior month. Core capital equipment orders fell 3.2% in December, compared with a gain of 1.1% in the prior month. Shipments of manufactured goods in December fell 2.9%, declining for five consecutive months in the longest streak since 1998. Inventories in December fell 1.4%, the largest decline since comparable has been published.
