May Trade Deficit Widens as Exports Fall

01:17 PM EDT, 07/03/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The US trade deficit widened more than projected in May amid falling exports, government data showed Thursday.

The goods and services deficit grew by nearly 19% sequentially to $71.52 billion in May, the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported. The consensus in a survey compiled by Bloomberg was for a deficit of $71 billion.

Exports dropped 4% to $279 billion, while imports edged 0.1% lower to $350.52 billion.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced a trade deal with Vietnam. After announcing sweeping new tariffs early in April, the US leader put a 90-day pause on certain levies for non-retaliating countries. Trump recently said he wasn't considering extending the July 9 deadline to re-impose higher tariffs.

Last week, the US and China reportedly confirmed details of a trade framework that would allow exports of rare earths and ease technology curbs.

The US saw a goods trade deficit of $22.54 billion with the European Union in May on a seasonally adjusted basis, widening from a $17.94 billion gap the month prior, according to government data released Thursday. The goods trade gap with China dropped to $13.97 billion from $19.7 billion.

The goods trade surplus with the UK decreased to $3.02 billion from $4.35 billion, while the deficit with Japan shrank to $5.77 billion from $5.82 billion.

Year-to-date, the US goods and services deficit jumped 50% year over year.

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