ASSOCIATED PRESS: Cars and cellphones were the driving force behind the American trade deficit ballooning to $51.4 billion.
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Cars and cellphones were the driving force behind the American trade deficit ballooning to $51.4 billion.
Exports were up 0.9 percent to $187.8 billion, while imports increased 7.7 percent to $239.2 billion. The trade deficit is the short-fall between exports and imports. The result suggests that international trade played a major role in the U.S. economy’s anemic growth in the first quarter. It could even force the government to further revise down its gross domestic product estimate for the period, possibly into negative territory.
Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics, said the massive trade deficit means the U.S. economy “undoubtedly contracted slightly in the first quarter.” He estimates GDP in the January-March period actually fell 0.3 percent instead of the 0.2 percent growth the government reported last week.
