Trade and Investment

This is what a $43.1 billion trade deficit looks like in one chart

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The trade deficit falls to 3 year low. Image: Unsplash/Nik Shuliahin

Felix Richter
Data Journalist, Statista
  • The U.S. trade deficit amounted to $43.1 billion in November 2019 - a three-year low.
  • Between January and November, the deficit with China declined by more than $60 billion.

Thanks in part to a $2 billion drop in its trade deficit with China, the U.S. trade deficit dropped to a three-year low in November 2019. As the Bureau of Economic Analysis has reported, the deficit in international trade of goods and services amounted to $43.1 billion in November, the lowest level since October 2016.

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While exports rose $1.4 billion to $208.6 billion in November, imports dropped $2.5 billion to $251.7 billion compared to the revised October figures. While the U.S. trade surplus in services remained relatively stable at $20.8 billion, the country’s deficit in international trade of goods decreased $3.9 billion, or 0.7 percent in the latest reading.

While decreasing slightly in November, the U.S. deficit with China remains by far the largest at $25.6 billion, with Mexico ($8.5 billion) and Japan ($5.7 billion) the closest contenders. The Trump administration’s tough stance vis-à-vis China appears to be paying dividends though, assuming the goal was to reduce the deficit. Looking at January through November figures, the deficit with China declined by more than $60 billion in 2019, a trend that was partly offset by growing deficits with Mexico (+$20 billion), the European Union (+$10 billion) and Taiwan (+$7 billion).

US trade deficit falls to three year low
US trade deficit falls to three year low Image: Statista
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