The United States’s trade deficit, which Donald Trump’s protectionist offensive aims to reduce, has crossed a new record in March, according to official data published on Tuesday.
last month, the American trade balance widened 14% over a month, to appear in deficit of 140.5 billion dollars, the Ministry of Commerce reported. Analysts anticipated the widening of the lower deficit, around -137 billion dollars.
Imports of goods have registered at a very high level, $ 419 billion, suggesting that companies have continued to strengthen their stocks to gain speed the implementation of new customs duties by the American executive.
The latter warned that he would announce “reciprocal” customs duties on April 2. The extent of the new surcharge imposed that day on products entering the United States had exceeded expectations. Donald Trump has partially backwards since then, except for China.
The import rush has already had a significant impact on the first gross domestic product estimate (GDP) for the first quarter of 2025, announced last week down 0.3% (annualized pace), after +2.4% in the previous quarter.
The American president justifies the penknses to be more than half a century of liberalization of exchanges by digging the trade deficit of the United States and the need to revitalize the national industry.
