Factory orders in May dip after two straight months of rises

Washington

NEW orders for US factory goods fell in May on weak demand for transportation and defence capital goods, but growing order backlogs and lean inventories suggested the worst of the manufacturing downturn was probably over.

The Commerce Department said on Tuesday that new orders for manufactured goods declined one per cent after two straight months of increases.

April's orders were revised slightly down to show a 1.8 per cent increase instead of…