US trade gap hits new record in January

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The US trade deficit surged to a new record in January, government data showed on Thursday, as imports spiked while tariff worries flared in the month of President Donald Trump's inauguration.

Trump returned to the White House this year with pledges to ease cost-of-living pressures for voters, but on the campaign trail, he also raised the possibility of sweeping levies across US imports.

The overall trade gap of the world's biggest economy ballooned 34 percent to $131.4 billion, on the back of a 10-percent jump in imports for the month, said the Commerce Department.

This was the widest deficit for a month on record, dating back to 1992, and the expansion was more than analysts anticipated.

The latest figures came after the US economy saw its goods deficit hit a fresh record, too, for the full year of 2024 at $1.2 trillion.

In January, imports came in at $401.2 billion, and this was $36.6 billion more than the level in December, Commerce Department data showed.

US exports, meanwhile, rose $3.3 billion between December and January to $269.8 billion.

Among sectors, imports of industrial goods jumped, such as those of certain metal products. Imports of consumer goods rose notably, too.