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April trade gap narrows
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June 17, 1999: 1:21 p.m. ET
Deficit shaved to $18.94B; rising exports suggest overseas turnaround
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The U.S. trade deficit narrowed slightly in April from March's record level as exports gained for a fourth month in a row, the government said Thursday -- a sign that demand for U.S. goods abroad may be on the rebound.
The trade deficit rang in at $18.94 billion in April, virtually unchanged from the revised record $18.95 billion gap in March, and less than the $19.8 billion consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Reuters. March's deficit originally was reported at $19.7 billion.
While little changed from March's record deficit, the report offered some hope to analysts and economists that demand for U.S. goods and services abroad may finally be starting to pick up again, particularly in economically challenged Asia which has been plagued by recession for the better part of the decade.
"This may mark the start of an upturn in exports, but it's too soon to be sure," said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist with High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, N.Y., noting the 51 percent year-to-year increase in exports to Korea. Exports to Japan rose almost 14 percent in the month.
Imports rose once again in April, edging up 1 percent to a record $96.95 billion, reflecting stronger demand for crude oil and consumer products. Exports, meantime, rose 1.2 percent to $78.01 billion, the fourth consecutive monthly gain and the highest level this year, reflecting increased auto shipments abroad and higher demand for capital goods, supplies and materials.
Asia on the rebound?
The rise in demand for U.S. products offered some indication that Asia's economic slump may finally be over, and that demand for U.S. goods and services in Europe and South America also is on the rebound, Shepherdson said.
Even so, many economists still anticipate this year's trade deficit will easily top last year's record $169.3 billion as demand for goods, services and investment at home overshadows demand for American goods abroad.
Through the first four months of the year, the deficit totaled $72.7 billion, up from $46.6 billion during the first four months of last year.
The deficit with Japan narrowed to $5.6 billion in April from $6.5 billion in March. The deficit with China widened to $4.8 billion from $4.1 billion in March.
The deficit with Canada, the largest U.S. trading partner, rose to $2.232 billion. The deficit with Mexico fell to $1.706 billion, while the deficit with Western Europe fell to $2.907 billion.
Separately, the Commerce Department said the nation's first-quarter current account deficit was $68.6 billion, well below the $73.3 billion forecast by economists, though still a record.
The current account, the broadest measure of trade because it counts goods, services and financial transactions flowing into and out of the country, was $63.77 billion in the fourth quarter of 1998.
Investors and economists don't track the quarterly report as closely as they used to, now that the monthly trade report covers services as well as goods. The previous record current account
deficit was $63.476 billion in the third quarter of last year. 
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Commerce Department
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