The U.S. deficit with its global trading partners tumbled by the largest amount on record in April as companies and consumers no longer rushed to get imports ahead of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Following a record-breaking surge in the trade imbalance, the deficit slid to $61.6 billion, a decrease of $76.7 billion from the prior month and below the Dow Jones consensus forecast for $66.3 billion, according to a Commerce Department report Thursday.
The move reverses a massive surge in imports that came ahead of Trump’s April 2 “liberation day” announcement.
In a move that was even more aggressive than anticipated, Trump slapped 10% across-the-board duties on U.S. imports and released a menu of so-called reciprocal tariffs aimed at what he considered unfair trade practices from dozens of countries.
Since then, Trump has backed off the reciprocal charges in lieu of a 90-day negotiating period. Similarly, he ratcheted down the levies aimed specifically at China, which responded in kind as talks continued.
Imports slowed sharply in April, falling 16.3% to $351 billion. At the same time, exports accelerated, rising 3%.
“‘Deficit’ implies something bad, but in this case the story is more nuanced. International trade has been good for the U.S. economy — importing more than we export has benefited Americans, by and large,” said Elizabeth Renter, senior economist at consumer site NerdWallet. “So when the trade deficit shrinks we should be cautious of interpreting this as fully positive news.”
On a year-to-date basis, the deficit has risen 65.7% from the same period in 2024.
The largest goods imbalance came with China, at $19.7 billion, followed by the European Union ($17.9 billion) and Vietnam ($14.5 billion).
In the latest developments on the trade front, Trump on Thursday said additional talks have taken place with China and more are likely soon. Trump said he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping for 90 minutes in what he deemed a “very good” call.
