WASHINGTON: The US trade deficit sailed to a record high of August, driven by imports as a business rebuilt inventory, the latest sign that economic growth slowed in the third quarter.
The trade deficit jumped 4.2 percent to $ 73.3 billion last month, the highest since the government began tracking the series, the trading department said on Tuesday.
Economists surveyed by Reuters have estimated the trade gap that widened to $ 70.5 billion.
When adapted to inflation, the goods trade deficit increased $ 1.9 billion to $ 101.8 billion in August.
The report followed on the heel of government data on Friday showed a sharp inflation sharply cutting with consumer spending in July, with a moderate rebound in August.
Atlanta Federal Reserve estimates gross domestic product braking to an annual rate of 2.3% in the third quarter.
The economy grew at a speed of 6.7 percent in the second quarter.
Trading has been reduced from GDP growth for four consecutive quarters.
Item imports rose 1.1 percent to $ 239.1 billion in August.
This increase is led by consumer goods such as pharmaceutical preparation, toys, games, and sporting goods.
There is also an increase in imports of industrial supplies and materials.
But motor vehicle imports, spare parts and machines fell $ 1.5 billion, reflecting global semiconductor deficiencies, which are production that are hampered.
The request of goods remains strong even because expenses shift back to services such as travel because more people are vaccinated against Covid-19.
Import services rose $ 1.3 billion to $ 47.9 billion in August.
Overall, imports jumped up 1.4 percent to $ 287.0 billion, the highest on records.
Export goods rose 0.7 percent to a record $ 149.7 billion.
Exports are appointed by industrial equipment and materials such as nonmonetary gold and natural gas.
But the export of motorized vehicles, parts and machines go down as well as capital goods such as civil aircraft and industrial machinery.
Corn exports also go down.
Service exports fell $ 0.1 billion to $ 64.0 billion in August, reflecting the acceptance of a weak trip in the midst of restrictions related to a pandemic.
However, there is an increase in export business services and costs for intellectual property use.
In total, exports rose 0.5 percent to $ 213.7 billion in August, the highest since May 2019.