US stocks fall after durable-goods orders slip

US stocks tumbled today, slicing 115 points from the Dow Jones industrials after a larger-than-expected drop in durable goods orders raised new questions about the economy and corporate profits.

Wall Street saw the Commerce Department’s report on durable goods – big-ticket items designed to last at least three years – as another in a line of signs that consumer spending could dry up and further harm an already decelerating economy.