Board-Ansicht
Mix-Ansicht- US Trade Deficit - or waiting for Godot - Erwin, 18.08.2000, 16:16
- Re: US Trade Deficit - or waiting for Godot - JüKü, 18.08.2000, 16:20
US Trade Deficit - or waiting for Godot
U.S. trade gap hits record
June deficit rises to $30.6B, driven by rising oil imports and prices
August 18, 2000: 9:59 a.m. ET
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Rising oil prices drove the U.S. trade deficit to a record $30.62 billion in June, according to a government report Friday.
The gap still came in lower than expected. A survey of analysts by Briefing.com forecast the deficit would rise to $31.5 billion in the month, compared with the revised $30.31 billion in May. The total gap edged past the previous record $30.61 billion set in March.
"The real surprise is the strength in exports. That's good news for the U.S. economy," Jay Bryson, global economist for First Union Corp. told Reuters."More generally, imports were up across the board, which shows the general strength of the U.S. economy. It would appear the economy is slowing to a moderate pace, but still the trend is quite strong."
Economic reports that have shown a slowing of the U.S. economy have been carefully watched as a sign the Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates at its meeting Tuesday.
Still, economists and investors felt that the Department of Commerce's June report showing a stronger-than-expected U.S. economy did little to change the expectation that the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged at the meeting. U.S. stock markets were early mixed Friday while bonds were little changed in the wake of the report.
"These data are mildly worrisome," said Steven Wood, chief economist at Bank of America."Strong exports bolster domestic manufacturing activity, while robust imports indicate still strong domestic demand. However, this is June data and will not alter the outlook for no action at Tuesday's policy meeting."
Despite the widening trade gap, U.S. exports increased to $90.6 billion from $86.6 billion in May. Exports were helped by improved shipments of capital goods, primarily semiconductors and computer accessories, industrial supplies and materials as well as consumer goods.
Imports increased to $121.2 billion from $116.9 billion in May, primarily due to an increase in the amount spent on crude oil. The average cost of a barrel of crude rose to $26.65 from $24.16 a barrel paid in May. That's the highest since the $29.51 paid in November 1990 in the wake of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.
The amount of oil imported also increased to a record 300.9 million barrels from 297 million barrels in May.
The deficit with Canada, the United States' largest trading partner, edged up to $4.3 billion from a revised $3.7 billion in May. The deficit with Mexico, its second-largest partner, fell to $2.3 billion from $2.5 billion. The deficit with Western Europe also declined, to $4.3 from $5.7 billion in May. But the gap with China, with which the United States has the largest trade deficit, widened to $7.2 billion from $6.3 billion in May.
"Looking ahead, I don't foresee any dramatic improvement or worsening of the gap," Bill Cheney, chief economist John Hancock Financial Services, said."On the whole, I think the more likely scenario is a very gradual narrowing. I do expect exports to increase, but waiting for allegedly healthier foreign economies to start buying American goods is getting to be like waiting for Godot, though there are hopeful signs in this report."
<center>
<HR>
</center>
Thread gesperrtgesamter Thread:
