US durable goods orders fall sharply

The outlook for the US economy dimmed a little after a report on Monday showed that durable goods orders fell 7.3 percent in July, the first decrease in four months and the biggest since August 2012.

The fall was mostly due to a 52.3 percent plunge in commercial aircraft orders. However, even excluding transportation equipment, orders fell 0.6 percent.

Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft fell 3.3 percent in July, the biggest decrease in five months.

Investors mostly shrugged off the weak report though. US stocks fell late on Monday only after Secretary of State John Kerry said the president will hold Syria’s government accountable for using chemical weapons.

The S&P 500 ended the day down 0.4 percent.