The US goods trade deficit expanded in December as imports surged and exports increased slightly, preliminary government figures showed on Wednesday.
The international trade deficit of goods was 68.3 billion US dollars in December, up $5.3 billion, or 8.4 per cent, from a revised $63.0 billion in the previous month, according to data from the US Census Bureau.
Exports of goods in December were $137.0 billion, up $0.4 billion, or 0.3 per cent from November, while imports of goods were $205.3 billion, up $5.8 billion, or 2.8 per cent from November, reports Xinhua.
The overall US trade deficit fell sharply in November to the lowest level in three years as imports declined further, according to earlier data from the Commerce Department.
The trade deficit in goods and services fell by 8.2 per cent to $43.1 billion in November, the smallest trade gap since October 2016, the department said.
From January to November, the goods and services deficit decreased $3.9 billion, or 0.7 per cent, from the same period in 2018.
Exports fell less than $0.1 billion, or less than 0.1 per cent, while imports declined $3.9 billion, or 0.1 per cent.
Data for the goods and services deficit in December will be released on Feb. 5.