The trade deficit falls to a low of 1 year and a half in May

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New vehicles are seen at the Horizon Terminal as they wait to be exported from Port Everglades on May 22, 2018 to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The US trade deficit fell to a one-and-a-half-year lows in May, as exports reached a record high, boosted by increased shipments of soybeans and beans. commercial aircraft. The month of April was slightly revised to show that the trade deficit fell to $ 46.1 billion instead of the $ 46.2 billion previously reported.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast that the trade deficit would fall to 43.7 billion. billion in May. Corrected for inflation, the trade gap narrowed to $ 75.3 billion, its lowest level since March 2017, rising from $ 77.5 billion in April. The real trade deficit in April and May was below its average of $ 82.5 billion in the first quarter.

The decline in the real trade deficit in April and May suggests that trade could contribute to gross domestic product in the second quarter after having a neutral impact over the January-March period. Estimates for second quarter GDP are above an annualized rate of 4.0%, double the growth of 2.0% recorded in the first three months of the year.

But tensions between the United States and its major trading partners the European Union, Canada, and Mexico are clouding the outlook for the rest of the year.

The Trump administration has imposed duties on a range of imported products, including steel and aluminum, to protect domestic industries from unfair competition. from foreign manufacturers. On Friday, the United States and China imposed duties of $ 34 billion on imports from the other party.

Economists have warned that tariffs could disrupt the supply chain, undermine business investment and raise prices and erased stimulus measures from a set of tax cuts $ 1.5 trillion that came into effect in January

The politically sensitive trade deficit with China jumped 18.7% to $ 33.2 billion in May. The deficit with Mexico jumped 18.8%

. In May, exports of goods and services rose 1.9% to a record $ 215.3 billion. Exports were boosted by a $ 1.9 billion increase in commercial aircraft deliveries. Soybean exports increased by $ 2.0 billion. Imports of goods and services rose 0.4% to $ 258.4 billion in May.