--US February durable goods orders -0.2%; ex-transportation +0.5%
--US January durable goods orders revised to -7.3% from -6.5%
--US February transportation equipment orders -2.6%
--Ex-defense, US February durable goods orders -1.0%
--Ex-defense and aircraft, US February capital goods shipments -2.6%
--Ex-defense and aircraft, US February capital goods orders -4.0%
--US February durable goods shipments -0.3%; unfilled orders -0.3%
--US February metals orders -1.1%; industrial machines -2.4%
--US February electronic equipment orders +6.0%
--US February civilian aircraft orders -20.1%

By Andrew Williams,
Washington, March 27 (BridgeNews) - U.S. manufacturing activity continued declining in February, with durable goods orders edging down 0.2%, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Private analysts had expected a 0.7% rise. Orders in all major sectors fell except for electronics. Transportation led the drop, with a 2.6% slide. Excluding transportation, durable goods orders rose 0.5%.
* * * The drop in orders was made worse by a downward revision to January's data.
Durable goods orders tumbled a revised 7.3% in January, previously reported down 6.5%.
Durable goods shipments and unfilled orders each fell 0.3% last month. Excluding defense, new orders for durable goods dropped 1.0%.
Although erratic, the durable goods data--which measures demand for goods with a lifespan of three years or more--is widely watched as an indicator of general economic health because purchases for such "big ticket" items are usually sensitive to interest rate shifts.
Private estimates in the BridgeNews survey for February durable goods orders ranged from down 3.0% to up 2.1%.
The contraction in orders--for the second month in a row--is another sign that manufacturing is still struggling amid high interest rates, slowing demand and spiking energy prices. The National Association of Purchasing Management's new orders index climbed to 40.8 in February, besting the previous month while remaining in recessionary territory.
Working to steer clear of further economic weakness, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 50 basis points last week, adding to the 100 basis points already clipped since Jan. 3. The Fed is generally expected to slash an additional half a percentage point no later than its scheduled policy making meeting on May 15.
MAIN COMPONENTS:
--New orders for civilian aircraft plummeted 20.1%.
--Industrial machinery and equipment orders fell 2.4%, reversing a revised 4.0% increase in January.
--Electronic and other electrical equipment orders rose 6.0%, rebounding from a revised 8.3% drop in January.
--Primary metals orders fell 1.1% in February, nearly double the 0.6% January decrease.
CAPITAL GOODS, ORDERS AND SHIPMENTS:
--Shipments of non-defense capital goods, excluding aircraft, a handy indicator of future capital spending by businesses, were down 2.6% in February.
--New orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, said by some to be the "core" orders series and an indicator of business investment, fell 4.0%. End