The U.S. trade deficit rose to $621 billion in 2018, and increase of $68.8 billion from the year before and the highest since 2008, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.
President Trump has made reducing the trade deficit, particularly the bilateral deficit with China, a top goal of his presidency, even though economists generally do not see trade deficits as a problem. He has worked to renegotiate trade deals with a range of countries and imposed punitive tariffs on China partly with the goal of reducing the trade gap.
The goods trade deficit with China hit a record $419.2 billion in 2018 as Trump engaged in high-stakes negotiations with Chinese officials to increase sales of American products to China.
Overall, U.S. exports rose in 2018, driven partly by oil exports, and imports also rose.
The higher trade deficit underscores the stakes for when the president meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month to discuss and end to the trade war. The U.S. is also laying the groundwork for talks with European Unions and Japan for new negotiations.
The numbers for December had been delayed by the federal government shutdown beginning that month and extending into January.
