The U.S. trade deficit narrowed unexpectedly in May as stronger growth overseas and the weak U.S. dollar helped propel exports to record levels, according to government data on Tuesday. Analysts said the smaller-than-expected trade gap would cause them to boost their second-quarter U.S. economic growth forecast. The May trade gap of $46.0 billion was below a median estimate of $48.3 billion made by Wall Street analysts surveyed before the report. The deficit narrowed for the first time in six months despite the highest prices for imported oil in nearly 22 years, which helped pushed overall imports to a record as well.
"The narrowing of the trade balance now looks to provide a favorable impact (on) second-quarter output," said Richard Dekaser, chief economist with National City Corp. in Cleveland.
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