New orders for durable goods from U.S. manufacturers rose 2.9% in August, compared to July — that number is courtesy of the Census Bureau. Durable goods, of course, refers to long-lasting equipment, like tractors and computers, or components thereof.

Overall, the jump in durable goods was more than most economists expected. But there was one category that really took off.

“A lot of that strength was concentrated in aircraft,” said Bill Adams, an economist with Comerica Bank.

He said aircraft orders tend to be volatile and not all that useful as an economic indicator. So, stripping out transport equipment, what were the numbers?

“Orders were up four-tenths of a percent on the month, which seems high until you consider that producer prices for goods grows three-tenths of a percent on the month,” Adams said.

In other words, much of the apparent rise isn’t because more stuff is being ordered, just that the stuff is getting more expensive. But Jason Miller, a supply chain researcher at Michigan State, said one sector where orders did outpace inflation was machinery. 

“That is not surprising because the triple B, the Big Beautiful Bill, re-introduced a 100% bonus depreciation,” Miller said.

Meaning companies that buy new equipment can earn bigger tax benefits. Miller said orders for many other categories were basically flat. That includes primary metals, like the ones the Trump administration has tried to protect with tariffs.

“We're not seeing really any movement right there in terms of new orders,” Miller said. “And so that would not be something consistent with some type of widespread domestic increase in steel or aluminum manufacturing activity.”

On balance, Ari Shwayder of the University of Michigan viewed the news on last month’s durable goods orders as not bad.

“I think my headline is like positive but cautious,” Shwayder said.

He said the fact that orders haven’t dropped off means businesses think that someone will be buying all the stuff they make with their new machinery. 

“Businesses either see currently or think they're going to see in the relatively near future consumer spending continue sort of on the path that consumer spending has been,” said Shwayder.

Which is pretty resilient.