US foreign trade deficit widens to $153.3B in January

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The foreign trade balance of the US posted a monthly deficit of $153.26 billion in January, according to official data released on Friday.

The deficit increased by 25.6% in January year-on-year.

The figure was up from $122.1 billion in December and exceeded the forecast of $116.9 billion, the US Census Bureau data showed.

US exports increased 1.8% in January on an annual basis to $172.2 billion, and its imports rose 25.5% to $325.4 billion.

On a monthly basis, exports and imports rose 2% and 11.9%, respectively.

In January, wholesale inventories of the US increased by 0.7% monthly to $905.2 billion.

Meanwhile, the country's retail inventories fell by 0.1% on a monthly basis to $821.3 billion in January.

As US President Donald Trump continues to deliver remarks about further tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China, the US foreign trade deficit gets wider.