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Trade

US Trade Deficit Grows to $68.3 Billion, Widest in Three Months

  • Resilient domestic demand helped fuel increase in imports
  • Inflation-adjusted exports of consumer goods, cars hit records
Shipping containers at the Port of Long Beach in Long Beach, California.

Shipping containers at the Port of Long Beach in Long Beach, California.

Photographer: Tim Rue/Bloomberg
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The US trade deficit grew to the widest in three months at the start of the year, reflecting a pickup in imports of merchandise.

The trade gap in goods and services increased 1.6% to $68.3 billion in January from a month earlier, Commerce Department data showed Wednesday. The figures aren’t adjusted for inflation. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a $68.7 billion gap.