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US: Goods and Services Trade deficit jumps to $109.8B in March versus $107B expected

According to the latest data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and US Census Bureau, the US Goods and Services Trade deficit jumped to $109.8B in March. That was larger than the expected increase to $107B from $89.8B in February. 

The Goods Deficit was $128.14B in March while the Services Surplus was $18.34B. Exports jumped 5.6% MoM in March to $241.72B from $228.82B a month earlier, while imports lept 10.3% to $351.52B from $318.62B a month earlier. 

The US trade deficit with China rose to $34B in March, up from $30.67B a month earlier. Meanwhile, the average price of imported crude oil jumped to $87.2 per barrel, up from $76.37 a month earlier, and up nearly 70% from March 2021's $51.54 per barrel. 

Market Reaction

The DXY has seen some fairly limited selling pressure in wake of the larger than expected jump in the US trade deficit and is currently at session lows in the 103.20s, though trade will probably remain fairly contained ahead of the Fed meeting later in the day. 

Author

Joel Frank

Joel Frank

Independent Analyst

Joel Frank is an economics graduate from the University of Birmingham and has worked as a full-time financial market analyst since 2018, specialising in the coverage of how developments in the global economy impact financial asset

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