WE BROKE THE RECORD....WE BROKE THE RECORD
Trade deficit hits all-time high in Feb.
From wire reports
WASHINGTON — The U.S. trade deficit, exacerbated by surging imports of oil and textiles, soared to an all-time high of $61.04 billion in February.
The Commerce Department said the February imbalance was up 4.3% from the $58.5 billion trade gap in January as a small $50 million rise in U.S. exports of goods and services was swamped by a $2.58 billion increase in imports.
The monthly shortfall was greater than the median estimate of $59 billion from analysts. The unexpectedly large jump in the trade gap is likely to cause analysts to trim their estimates for first-quarter economic growth.
U.S. exports continued to be strong, exceeding $100 billion for the third consecutive month. Higher shipments of industrial supplies and materials and consumers goods more than offset declines in capital goods and autos.
Imports set records in several categories — including autos and auto parts, consumer goods and industrial supplies and materials — in a sign of strong U.S. demand.
A jump in average monthly crude oil import prices to $36.85 a barrel propelled the value of petroleum and product imports to the second highest level on record, despite the lowest volume of crude oil in a year.
Overall imports from China dipped to $17.0 billion in February, the lowest level since June, and the U.S. trade deficit with China also fell to $13.9 billion, the lowest since May.
However, in a sector causing political difficulties for the Bush administration, imports of clothing and textiles from the Asian manufacturing giant jumped 9.8% in February following the end of U.S. import quotas in January.
Total clothing and textile imports from China for the first two months of 2005 surged 62.4% from the same period last year.
American textile and clothing manufacturers are lobbying the administration to limit imports of Chinese textile and clothing goods to ward off a flood of products now that global quotas have expired.