U.S. Trade Gap Widens While Canada Turns From Surplus To Deficit

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Meanwhile, here are the major headlines from the last week:

• The U.S. trade deficit rose from $79.33 billion in November 2021 to $80.73 billion in December 2021, a figure that was close to the country’s all-time high of $80.81 billion recorded in September 2021. The goods trade deficit rose from $98.27 billion in November to $101.43 billion in December, a record high. U.S.-manufactured goods exports totaled $1.13 billion in 2021, a nearly 19 percent increase from 2020. Manufactured goods imports grew 19.08 percent. Read the full report here.
• After running surpluses for six months in a row, Canada posted a trade deficit of $137 million in December 2021. Imports were up 3.7 percent that month and were driven largely by a 16.2 percent gain in imports of electronic and electrical equipment and parts. Motor vehicle imports rose 5.1 percent. Exports declined 0.9 percent to $57.6 billion. That drop was due mostly to a 5.9 percent decline in exports of energy products.
• According to the U.S. Department of Labor, during the week that ended February 5, 2022, 223,000 individuals filed for federal unemployment benefits for the first time, a decrease of 16,000 from the previous week’s level. The four-week moving average of first-time claims also fell, but the number of people who continued to receive benefits rose.
• In other economic news: real average hourly earnings in the United States rose 0.1 percent between December 2021 and January 2022, but were down 1.7 percent between January 2021 and January 2022; U.S. consumer prices rose at their highest rates since 1982, jumping 7.5 percent between January 2021 and January 2022. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was up six percent. That reading also reflected the biggest expansion in inflation since 1982.