The U.S. trade deficit in goods widened to a record high in December, likely as businesses front-loaded imports of industrial supplies and consumer goods in anticipation of broad tariffs from ...

The U.S. trade deficit widened sharply in December as imports surged to a record high against the backdrop of tariff threats.

A wider trade deficit as a result of an influx of imports is usually offset by a rise in inventories in the calculation of GDP. Trade and inventories are the most volatile components of GDP.