Trump Tariffs Threat Bloats Trade Deficit to Record High

The U.S. trade deficit widened to a record high in March, as the looming threat of President Donald Trump‘s imminent tariffs fuelled stockpiling by importers.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said the goods trade deficit—the difference between imports and exports—was $163.5 billion during the month, an 11.2 percent increase on February.

There is a trade deficit if imports exceed exports, and a surplus if the difference is the other way around.

Trump has pointed to trade deficits as a key motivator of his tariff policy. He views a trade deficit as a sign that the U.S. is being taken advantage of by its trading partner.

In April, Trump introduced his sweeping reciprocal tariffs on dozens of trading partners, at a rate set individually for each to reflect what he said were the trade barriers they imposed on the U.S.

But he has since paused temporarily the reciprocal tariff rate for all except China, to give space for negotiations on new trade deals.

A baseline 10 percent tariff on all foreign imports, and others relating to national security concerns, as well as those for autos and certain metals, remain in place.

This is a breaking news story and more information will be added soon.