Capital Goods Orders Decrease

Orders for capital goods fell in September, meaning there is a slowdown in U.S. business investment which now gives the Federal Reserve more reason to ease policy next week. Non-military orders for equipment like computers and machinery meant to last at least three years and excluding airplanes dropped by .6 percent after a 4.8 percent gain in August. Another report showed sales of new houses hovered near a record low last month. An economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. says that areas in the economy that were quite hot, like capital spending, have begun to cool and areas that were cold, like housing, have been stabilizing, and the economy is not growing fast enough for the Fed’s liking.