US trade deficit shrinks as Chinese imports plummet
WASHINGTON — The U.S. trade deficit fell in March to the lowest level in 16 months as imports plunged by the largest amount since the depths of the recession.
T he trade deficit narrowed to $40.4 billion inMarch, a drop of 13.9 percent from February, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. It was the smallest trade gap since November 2014.
Exports slipped 0.9 percent to $176.6 billion. Meanwhile, imports declined 3.6 percent to $217.1 billion as American demand for everything from autos to computers and toys fizzled. It marked the largest percentage drop since February 2009.
Trade is playing a major role in the current presidential campaign, with Republican front-runner Donald Trump vowing to punish countries such as China and Mexico for trade practices.
ForMarch, the politically sensitive deficit with China fell 25.7 percent to $20.9 billion. Through the first three months of this year, the deficit with China ran 5.4 percent lower than the same period a year ago.
Trump has accused China and other nations of pursuing unfair trade practices that have cost millions of American jobs.
America’s deficit with the European Union jumped 31.9 percent to $13.1 billion. The deficit with Mexico increased 8.9 percent to $5.4 billion, and the deficit with Japan increased 25.6 percent to $6.7 billion.
Economists are forecasting that imports will keep rising this year. Demand is expected to be solid in a U.S. economy that is growing faster than many other parts of theworld.