US foreign trade rises more than expected in January
America's shortfall in trade with the rest of the world widened at the start of 2020, as import outgrowth continued to outpace overseas sales.
According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms the foreign trade deficit widened by 1.9% versus the month before to reach $68.2bn (consensus: -$67.5bn).
Exports grew by 1.0% in comparison to the month before, hitting $191.9bn, while imports were 1.2% higher to $260.2bn.
The worsening deficit was entirely on account of the trade balance in goods, where the deficit increased by $1.3bn to -$85.4bn.
It was even worse year-on-year, with the total US trade deficit ballooning by 53.7% or $23.8bn, as exports shrank by 7.6% or $15.7bn even as imports grew 3.2% to $8.1bn.