Data released by the U.S. Commerce Department on Friday showed that new orders for durable goods were unchanged in January, defying expectations for an increase.
According to the report, orders for long-lasting manufactured goods were essentially flat during the month after declining by a revised 0.9% in December.
Economists had anticipated a 0.5% rise in January orders, following what had previously been reported as a 1.4% drop in the prior month.
When transportation equipment is excluded—a category that can be volatile—durable goods orders rose 0.4% in January, after posting a 1.3% gain in December. Analysts had forecast a slightly stronger increase of 0.5%.
In a separate release, the Commerce Department also reported that U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2025 was significantly weaker than previously estimated.
Gross domestic product expanded at an annualized rate of 0.7% in the fourth quarter, sharply below the earlier estimate of 1.4% growth. Economists had expected the previous estimate to remain unchanged.
The revised figure marks a steep slowdown compared with the 4.4% growth recorded in the third quarter of 2025.
Officials said the downward revision to GDP was driven by weaker estimates for exports, consumer spending, government expenditures, and business investment.