(RTTNews) - A report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday showed a substantial increase in the size of the U.S. trade deficit in the month of September, as imports surged and exports slumped.
The Commerce Department said the trade deficit widened to $84.4 billion in September from a revised $70.8 billion in August.
Economists had expected the trade deficit to jump to $84.1 billion from the $70.4 billion originally reported for the previous month.
With the sharp increase, the trade deficit reached its highest level since hitting $85.4 billion in April 2022.
The spike in the size of the trade deficit came as the value of imports shot up by 3.0 percent to $352.3 billion, while the value of exports tumbled by 1.2 percent to $267.9 billion.
"We expect imports to outpace exports in the short term, as investment in data centers and semiconductors supports capital goods imports and a strong consumer pushes retailers to build out inventories," said Matthew Martin, Senior U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.
He added, "The outcome of the election could add upside risk to imports if businesses seek to pre-empt potential tariff increases in the event of a second Donald Trump Presidency."
Imports of consumer goods, capital goods, industrial supplies and materials and automotive vehicles, parts and engines all saw significant growth.
Meanwhile, the report showed notable decreases by exports of civilian aircraft, pharmaceutical preparations and crude oil.
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