US trade deficit falls as exports hit more than 1-1/2 year high

[WASHINGTON] The US trade deficit fell more than expected in December as exports rose to their highest level in more than 1-1/2 years, outpacing an increase in imports.

The Commerce Department said on Tuesday the trade gap dropped 3.2 per cent to US$44.3 billion, ending two straight months of increases. The trade deficit rose 0.4 per cent to a four-year high of US$502.3 billion in 2016. That represented 2.7 per cent of gross domestic product, down from 2.8 per cent in 2015.

The Trump administration is targeting trade in its quest to boost economic growth. President Donald Trump has vowed to make sweeping changes to US trade policy, starting with pulling out of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact.

Mr Trump also wants to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which was signed in 1994 by the United States, Canada and Mexico. Economists, however, warn that the America-first or protectionist policies being pursued by the administration are a threat the country's economic health.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the trade gap slipping to US$45.0 billion in December.

When adjusted for inflation, the deficit decreased to US$62.3 billion from US$63.9 billion in November. The improvement in the deficit at the end of the year could set up trade to be a modest drag on growth in the first quarter.

US financial markets were little moved by the report as the government published an estimate of the goods deficit last month. Trade slashed 1.7 percentage points from gross domestic product in the fourth quarter, leaving output rising at a 1.9 per cent annualized rate. The economy grew at a 3.5 per cent pace in the third quarter.

In December, exports of goods and services increased 2.7 per cent to US$190.7 billion, the highest since April 2015, as shipments of advanced technology goods such as aerospace, biotechnology and electronics, hit a record high.

There were increases in exports of industrial supplies and materials, capital goods, consumer goods and motor vehicles. Still, exports remain constrained by relentless dollar strength. The dollar gained 4.4 per cent against the currencies of the United States' main trading partners last year.

Exports to the European Union jumped 10.1 per cent, with goods shipped to Germany surging 12.4 per cent.

A Trump trade adviser has accused Germany of unfairly benefiting from a weak euro. Exports to China, another sore point for Trump, fell 4.1 per cent.

Imports of goods and services rose 1.5 per cent to US$235.0 billion in December, the highest level since March 2015. Part of the increase in the import bill reflects higher oil prices, as well as strengthening domestic demand.

The price of imported crude oil averaged US$41.45 in December, the highest since September 2015. Food imports hit a record high, as did those of motor vehicles.

Imports of goods from China fell 7.6 per cent in December. Germany saw a 1.4 per cent increase in merchandise shipped to the United States in December.

With both exports and imports falling, the politically sensitive U.S.-China trade deficit dropped 9.0 per cent to US$27.8 billion in December. The trade deficit with China decreased US$20.1 billion to US$347.0 billion in 2016.

The trade gap with Germany declined 6.2 per cent to US$5.3 billion in December. The trade deficit with Germany narrowed US$10.0 billion to US$64.9 billion last year.

The United States also saw big declines in its trade deficits with Canada and Mexico in December.

REUTERS