U.S. Exports Grow at Fastest Pace in Three Years

Staff Reports

July was a good month for U.S. exports. According to Tuesday’s report from the Commerce Department, the exportation of U.S. good and services increased 2.7% – the fastest seasonally adjusted growth in more than three years. And enough to put a small dent in the U.S. trade deficit, shrinking it by three-tenths of a percent.

Of course the declining dollar has made U.S. goods cheaper for foreign consumers. According to the Fed, the dollar has dropped 7.9% since early 2006. Rampant levels of global growth have also fueled this small boom – the only scrap of good news for investors since the dismal employment report on Sept.7. In fact, the value of U.S. exports hit new highs with increases in capital goods (5.2%), consumer goods (4.2%), automobiles and auto parts (14.6%), and foods (3.9%).

On the flip side, U.S. consumers imported record values of foods and feed. Imports from China were valued at $28.6 billion, as the U.S. trade gap with China widened to $23.8 billion in July. The gap now stands at $141.3 billion for all of 2007, a 16% increase from last year.

According to government data, China’s exports rose 22.7% to $111.36 billion, and the country’s imports were up 20.1% to $86.38 billion. China has its own problems however, as its inflation has now spiked to 6.5%, its highest point in more than a decade. Beijing has already raised interest rates four times this year, but the moves have failed to curtail the nation’s rapid economic acceleration.

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