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Economists forecast that orders for things designed to last for long fell 1.5% during the month, according to Bloomberg. Orders excluding the volatile transportation category are estimated to drop 0.5%.
Orders for capital goods for nondefense items excluding aircraft, or so-called core durable goods, are estimated to drop 0.1%. Shipments in this category are forecast at 0.1%.
With the exception of shipments, these estimates reflect the expectation for a drop in durable goods production in August, although the prior month's data are subject to revision.
After a strong July, with durable goods orders up 4.4%, there's some expected pullback.
Additionally, the headline change in orders could be dragged down by the transportation category. Recent data from Boeing showed that its orders trended downwards in the last few months. Also, August is not seasonally a big month for aircraft orders.