ANKARA

The US trade deficit widened by 24.7% month-on-month to $98.4 billion in December 2024, its highest level since March 2022, according to the Commerce Department's Census Bureau on Wednesday.

The figure was above the market forecast of $96.5 billion while the trade gap for November was revised to $78.9 billion.

As American businesses hurried to stock up on goods before US President Donald Trump's tariffs took effect, imports rose by 3.5% month-on-month, reaching a record-breaking $364.9 billion.

Exports, on the other hand, dropped 2.6% from a month ago to $266.5 billion.

For the whole 2024, the goods and services deficit increased 17% from the previous year to $918.4 billion.

Exports climbed 3.9% to $3.2 trillion and imports went up 6.6% to $4.1 trillion.

The largest trade gaps were recorded with China ($295.4 billion), the EU ($235.6 billion) and Mexico ($171.8 billion). The trade deficit with Canada stood at $63.34 billion.