The U.S. goods and accommodations deficit with its global trading partners fell to $49.4 billion in February, its lowest level since June 2018 and by a long way below estimates, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.
Washington also has been engaged in trade talks with Japan. The deficit with that state rose to $6.7 billion for the month, a 24 percent increase.
President Donald Trump has made reducing the swap deficit a cornerstone of his economic program. The imbalance hit a record $59.9 billion in December.
Exports rose in good renounce due to a surge in civilian aircraft orders, which showed a $2.2 billion increase, or 60.5 percent, from January. Semiconductors also engender more than 9 percent.
The report did not offer “particularly compelling reasons to be upbeat about economic prospects this year, but the appears do at least confirm that net trade will provide a substantial positive contribution to first-quarter GDP growth, which we now about was 2.0% annualized,” Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics, said in a note.
Indeed, J.P. Morgan lifted its first-quarter view on GDP to 2.5 percent from 2 percent.