US Trade Deficit Plummets by $76,700,000,000 in April Following the Rollout of Trump’s Tariffs

The US trade deficit plummeted by $76.7 billion in April following the rollout of the Trump Administration’s wave of tariffs.

The total goods and services deficit was $61.6 billion in April, down from $138.3 billion in March, per a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The US clocked $289.4 billion worth of exports in April, $8.3 billion more than March, and $351.0 billion worth of imports, which was $68.4 billion less than the previous month.

“The April decrease in the goods and services deficit reflected a decrease in the goods deficit of $75.2 billion to $87.4 billion and an increase in the services surplus of $1.5 billion to $25.8 billion.

Year-to-date, the goods and services deficit increased $179.3 billion, or 65.7 percent, from the same period in 2024. Exports increased $58.4 billion or 5.5 percent. Imports increased $237.8 billion or 17.8 percent.”

The US trade deficit skyrocketed in March as consumers and businesses stockpiled ahead of Trump’s tariffs.

The future of those tariffs remains uncertain as rulings about their legality ping-pong back and forth through the US court system.

Last week, the United States Court of International Trade (CIT) ruled that many of the duties exceed the authority granted to the president by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The federal court struck down Trump’s April 2nd executive order establishing tariffs against 57 countries worldwide and several follow-up executive orders modifying the duties’ rates and start dates.

The CIT also axed a slew of earlier tariffs Trump had applied to Mexico, Canada and China, which he claimed were retaliation for failing to stop the flood of illegal narcotics into the US.

The Trump Administration immediately appealed the CIT’s ruling and requested a stay on the judgment, which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit granted.