U.S. trade deficit shrinks in August

The U.S. trade deficit in August totaled $42.4 billion, slightly lower than analyst expectations and a 2.7 percent drop from July, according to recent data from the Department of Commerce.    The U.S. trade deficit totaled $42.4 billion in August, a 2.7 percent decline from July, as export value rose amid a decline in imports, according to data released by the U.S. Commerce Department.
   Economists survey by the Wall Street Journal and Reuters both expected the nation’s trade deficit to total $42.7 billion for August.
   During the month, U.S. exports stood at $195.3 billion, inching up 0.4 percent from July, while U.S. imports totaled $237.7 billion, slipping 0.1 percent compared with the previous month.
   The Commerce Department said the August data likely reflects some of the initial effects of Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall in southeastern Texas on Aug. 25. Impacts from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria will most likely be reflected in subsequent reports until normal trade activities resume in affected areas, according to the Commerce Department.
   Broken down by region, surpluses were recorded with South and Central America ($2.7 billion), Hong Kong ($2.5 billion), Singapore ($800 million), the United Kingdom ($600 million) and Brazil ($400 million).
   However, deficits were recorded with China ($29.7 billion), the European Union ($10.9 billion), Japan ($6.3 billion), Mexico ($5.8 billion), Germany (4.8 billion), Italy ($2.5 billion), South Korea ($2.1 billion), India ($1.6 billion), Taiwan ($1.5 billion), France ($800 million), OPEC ($800 million), Canada ($400 million) and Saudi Arabia ($100 million).
   Despite the U.S. trade deficit dropping month-over-month in August, for the first eight months of the year, the nation’s trade deficit stood at $361.4 billion, an 8.8 percent jump from the corresponding 2016 period.