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Dow Jones NewsMay 6, 12:49 PM UTC
DJ Trade Deficit Widens to a Record $140.5 Billion -- WSJ
By Matt Grossman
The U.S. trade deficit soared to a record high in March, as importers raced to bring in foreign goods before new tariffs kicked in.
-- U.S. imports in March rose 4.4% to $419 billion, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.
-- Exports ticked up fractionally to $278.5 billion.
-- That yielded a deficit of $140.5 billion-a 14% increase from a month earlier, and a bigger jump from February than analysts had been forecasting.
Leveling out the deficit is a key aim of President Trump's trade policies. As companies anticipated new tariffs earlier this year, though, that had the opposite effect, spurring businesses to bring goods into the country as quickly as they could.
Data covering April, which is due in early June, will give a clearer picture of how trade evolved after Trump's April 2 "Liberation Day" tariff blitz.
This item is part of a Wall Street Journal live coverage event. The full stream can be found by searching P/WSJL (WSJ Live Coverage).
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 06, 2025 08:49 ET (12:49 GMT)
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