US Factory Orders Suffer Biggest Drop in 3.5 Years in Warning Sign for Economy

In a warning sign for the economy, factory orders have suffered their sharpest drop since the onset of the pandemic, when lockdowns led to an economic crash.

Workers assemble cars at Ford's Assembly Plant in Chicago, Ill., on June 24, 2019. Jim Young/AFP via Getty Images

New orders for American-made goods have suffered the sharpest drop in three-and-a-half years, with the latest sign of a slump in U.S. manufacturing adding to fears of a coming recession.

According to the latest month of available data from the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau, factory orders fell 3.6 percent in October.