Lower oil prices squeezing U.S. manufacturing sector

By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods in December recorded their biggest drop in 16 months as lower oil prices and a strong dollar pressured factories, the latest indication that economic growth braked sharply at the end of 2015. Despite the slowdown in growth, which was acknowledged by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, the labor market remains on solid ground. "U.S. companies are cutting investment sharply, and the key worry is that it seem