U.S. Trade Deficit Smaller
The U.S. trade deficit was narrower than expected in March as a record number of exports of services partly cushioned a drop in merchandise shipments, Commerce Department data showed Thursday.
• Gap little changed at $43.7 billion (forecast was $44.5 billion) from a revised $43.8 billion in February
• Exports decreased 0.9 percent to $191 billion, biggest drop since October, led by energy, autos and pharmaceuticals
• Imports fell 0.7 percent to $234.7 billion on capital goods and industrial supplies
• Exports of services rose 0.6 percent to a record $64.7 billion, led by finance and maintenance and repair
The goods-trade deficit with Mexico widened to $7 billion, the highest since November 2007, as imports rose to a record $28.1 billion. The gap with China increased to $24.6 billion from $23 billion in February. At the same time, exports to the European Union and South Korea rose to records, while shipments to Germany were the highest since 2008
