March Trade Deficit at $50.79B, Below Forecast

The U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, also known as the FT-900, is published monthly by the Bureau of Economic Analysis with data going back to 1992. The monthly reports include revisions that go back several months. This report details U.S. exports and imports of goods and services.

The U.S. monthly international trade deficit increased in March 2019 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. The deficit increased from $49.3 billion in February (revised) to $50.0 billion in March, as imports increased more than exports. The previously published February deficit was $49.4 billion. The goods deficit increased $0.5 billion in March to $72.4 billion. The services surplus decreased $0.2 billion in March to $22.4 billion.

Here is an excerpt from the latest report:

The U.S. monthly international trade deficit decreased in April 2019 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. The deficit decreased from $51.9 billion in March (revised) to $50.8 billion in April, as imports decreased more than exports. The previously published March deficit was $50.0 billion. The goods deficit decreased $1.0 billion in April to $71.7 billion. The services surplus increased $0.1 billion in April to $20.9 billion. Current Release

Today's headline number of -50.79B was below the Investing.com forecast of -50.70B.

 

Here is a snapshot that gives a better sense of the extreme volatility of this indicator.