U.S. and Canada report wider trade deficits in May
May’s US trade deficit of $75.1bn from $74.5bn in April is the widest since October 2022 but a little narrower than expected due to exports being less weak than signaled in the advance goods report.
Overall exports fell by 0.7% reversing a 0.7% April increase while imports fell by 0.3% after a 2.3% bounce in April.
Goods exports fell by 1.7%, significantly less than the 2.7% fall seen in advance data, while goods imports fell by 0.8% versus a 0.7% decline seen in the advance data. In real terms goods exports fell by 0.9% while goods imports fell by 0.4%.
Services showed both exports and imports up by 1.3% correcting modest dips in April, with the service surplus slightly higher as service exports rose by more in USD terms.
Canada’s May trade deficit increased to C$1.93bn from C$1.32bn with exports down by 2.6% and imports down by 1.6%. In real terms exports fell by 1.7% and imports fell by 1.3%. The monthly deficit is the highest since June 2023.
