By country, the United States ran another record trade deficit with China: $318.4 billion for the year, an increase of 1 percent from 2012. The United States has recorded its largest trade deficit with China each year since 2000, when that country supplanted Japan as the nation with the largest trade imbalance with the United States. That is likely to add to pressure on Congress and the Obama administration to crack down on what critics see as China’s unfair trade practices. U.S. manufacturers contend that China is keeping its currency undervalued against the dollar by as much as 40 percent in order to gain trade advantages. A weaker Chinese currency makes Chinese goods cheaper for U.S. consumers and American products more expensive in China.
Analysts said the larger-than-expected trade deficit for December would likely reduce estimates of growth in the October-December quarter. The government had initially estimated fourth-quarter growth at a 3.2 percent annual rate. But economists at Barclays say the bigger December gap could reduce that estimate to a 2.8 percent rate.
The trade deficit rose to $38.7 billion in December, a 12 percent increase over November, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Exports slipped 1.8 percent to $191.3 billion. Imports rose 0.3 percent to $230 billion.
A smaller trade deficit can boost economic growth. U.S. manufacturers gain from rising export sales while U.S. consumers are buying fewer foreign-made products.