U.S. Trade Deficit Surges 42% in May to $77.6 Billion on Record Goods Imports
- The U.S. goods-and-services trade deficit widened to $77.6B in May from a revised $54.6B in April, with imports rising 3.3% to $395.3B as capital-goods imports hit a record $128B, driven by AI-related investment (NYT, Bloomberg).
- Exports fell 3.2% to $317.7B, weighed down by a drop in gold shipments, leaving the widest monthly gap in more than a year just as the Trump administration touts its foreign-investment agenda (NYT, Bloomberg).
- The data underscores how AI capex is reshaping the U.S. external balance ahead of Fed minutes due Wednesday and second-quarter earnings season.