The US trade gap swelled by the highest amount in more than a decade in July owing to a surge of imports driven by a jump in demand for foreign cars, oil and consumer goods, official figures showed yesterday.
The trade deficit grew by 16.3 per cent from June to $32bn (€22bn, £19bn) with exports trailing imports. The result surprised economists who were expecting the gap to remain flat near $27bn.
The US trade deficit with the rest of the world has plunged by 51 per cent from a year ago, as both imports and exports fell amid the global recession. Analysts have called the smaller deficit one of the few bright spots amid the downturn, and it has eased some of the economy's overall contraction.