U.S. Trade Gap Widens in 2016 as Exports, Imports Both Shrink

The U.S. trade deficit widened last year to the biggest since 2012 as exports fell more than imports, though a narrowing gap in December suggests demand is stabilizing overseas for American goods.

For all of 2016, the deficit increased 0.4 percent to $502.3 billion, including a wider annual gap with Mexico and a smaller one with China, Commerce Department figures showed Tuesday. The monthly shortfall shrank 3.2 percent to $44.3 billion. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a deficit of $45 billion in December.