December durable goods orders plunged 3.4%, while excluding transportation, orders dropped 0.8%, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
November orders were off a revised 2.1%, originally reported as a 0.9% drop. While excluding transportation, orders fell 1.3% in November.
Economists polled by IFR expected a 0.5% gain in orders, 0.6% excluding transportation.
Excluding defense, orders declined 3.2% after a 1.4% slide the previous month.