The U.S. trade deficit widened in 2016 to the biggest since 2012 as exports fell more than imports, though a narrowing gap in December suggests demand is stabilizing overseas for American goods.
For all of 2016, the deficit increased 0.4% to $502.3 billion, including a wider annual gap with Mexico and a smaller one with China, Commerce Department figures showed Feb. 7. The monthly shortfall shrank 3.2% to $44.3 billion. The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of economists called for a deficit of $45 billion in December.
