U.S. trade deficit

The U.S. trade deficit "hit a record $68 billion" in July 2006, "as surging global oil prices pushed America's foreign oil bill to the highest level in history," the U.S. Department of Commerce reports. 

"So far [in 2006], the deficit is running at an annual rate of $776 billion, putting the country on course to rack up a record annual deficit for the fifth straight year," Martin Crutsinger reported in the September 12, 2006, Washington Post.

Related SourceWatch Resources

 * Bush administration
 * free trade
 * Trade Agreements
 * U.S. budget deficit
 * U.S. economy

Websites

 * "Trade Ticker" posted on American Economic Alert website: "the web's only up-to-the-second counter for the U.S. Trade Deficit."

Articles & Commentary

 * Balance of Trade in the Wikipedia.
 * "Record U.S. Trade Deficit In 2003," Associated Press/CBS News, February 13, 2004.
 * David Armstrong, "U.S. racks up record trade deficit in '05. $725.8 billion total is 17.5% increase over 2004's mark," San Francisco Chronicle, February 11, 2006.
 * "US trade deficit soars to record ... high in 2005," BBC, March 14, 2006.
 * "US trade deficit reaches $63.5bn. The US trade deficit increased in April by 2.5% to $63.4bn (£35.4bn), as oil prices surged to nearly $71 per barrel," BBC, June 9, 2006.
 * Marcy Gordon, "U.S. Trade Deficit Increases in May," Washington Post, July 12, 2006.
 * Martin Crutsinger, "Trade Deficit Hits $68B Record in July," Washington Post, September 12, 2006.
 * Greg Robb, "Oil imports lead to record trade gap in July," MarketWatch, September 12, 2006.