US current account deficit widens 0.5% to $190.3B in Q2

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - The US' current account deficit widened by $0.9 billion, or 0.5%, to $190.3 billion in the second quarter of 2021, the Commerce Department announced Tuesday.

It beat market expectations for the figure – which reflects the combined balances on trade in goods and services and income flows between US residents and residents of other countries – that it would come in at $191 billion.

The first quarter figure was also revised downward to $189.4 billion, from $195.7 billion.

"The $0.9 billion widening of the current account deficit in the second quarter mainly reflected reduced surpluses on services and on primary income that were mostly offset by a reduced deficit on secondary income," the department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said in a statement.

It noted that the second quarter deficit was 3.3% of current dollar gross domestic product (GDP), down from 3.4% in the first quarter.