In this Wednesday, July 13, 2016, photo, the container ship Tropic Carib is shown docked at the Port of Palm Beach in Riviera Beach, Fla.
Advertisement
Aug 5 The U.S. trade deficit rose to a 10-month high in June as rising domestic demand and higher oil prices boosted the import bill while the lagging effects of a strong dollar continued to hamper export growth.
With the value of imports increasing by much more than the value of exports, the Commerce Department released a report on Friday showing that the US trade deficit widened by more than anticipated in the month of June.
The country’s trade deficit with the rest of the world climbed 8.7% in June to a seasonally adjusted US$44.5bil (RM179.8bil).
In terms of bilateral trade, the United States deficit with China continued to rise, reaching US$29.8bil, the highest level since November.
Imports of goods and services increased 1.9 percent to $227.7 billion in June, with oil prices accounting for part of the rise.
Although a higher deficit subtracts from GDP, the official scorecard of the nation’s growth, more demand for consumer goods suggests Americans are still spending at a pace consistent with a fairly healthy if slowly expanding economy.
The C$3.63 billion ($2.79 billion) deficit was greater than the C$2.82 billion that economists had expected.
Through the first six months of this year, the deficit is 2.3 percent below the same period in 2015, a year in which America’s deficit in goods and services trade rose 2.1 percent to $500.4 billion. The U.S. exported less oil and fewer new autos in June. Oil prices averaged $39.38 per barrel in June, the highest level since October of past year, from $34.19 in May. Demand for crude oil jumped by $1.43 billion as the average price of a barrel surged $5.19, the most since May 2011.
Advertisement
Canada’s trade surplus with the United States, its largest trading partner, narrowed to C$1.81 billion as imports from south of the border rose 1.5 percent.
