Trade deficit soars to $56B
Washington ? The U.S. trade deficit shot up 6.3 percent in April to $56.96 billion, reflecting a surge in oil imports to the second highest level on record, the government reported Friday.
The Commerce Department said the new trade imbalance increased from a $53.56 billion deficit in March as imports rose 4.1 percent to a new record, swamping a 3 percent increase in U.S. export sales, which also set a record.
So far this year, the trade deficit is running at an annual rate of $686 billion, 11 percent higher than the record $617.58 billion deficit set for all of 2004.
Total imports rose to an all-time high of $163.38 billion in April, led by a 4.3 percent jump in petroleum imports to $19.4 billion, just below last November’s record. The average price for a barrel of crude oil imported during April hit a record high of $44.76 as global prices surged during the month.
Exports also rose to a record level of $106.42 billion in April, with sales of commercial aircraft, computer chips and industrial engines all posting big increases.
The soaring trade deficits have translated into a major political headache for President Bush as critics contend his trade policies have failed to protect American workers from unfair foreign competition, resulting in a string of record deficits and the loss of more than 3 million manufacturing jobs since mid-2000.
For April, the deficit with China rose 14 percent to $14.7 billion. So far this year, the deficit with China is running at an annual rate of $170 billion, surpassing last year’s record deficit of $162 billion with China, the highest ever recorded with any country.
This year’s increase with China has been propelled by a 51.7 percent rise in imports of textiles and clothing during the past four months, compared to the same period a year ago.
This sharp increase has occurred with the lifting of a three-decade system of global quotas on Jan. 1.