US deficit falls to lowest level in 2 years

Posted by has in , , on Thursday, December 15, 2011

US deficit falls to 2-year low of $110.3 billion
The US current-account deficit has narrowed in the third quarter to $110.3 billion, the lowest level since the final three months of 2009, Associated Press (AP) reported Thursday.

The broadest measure of international trade because it includes income payments and government transfers, the current-account deficit of America has fell to 11.6 percent, reflecting stronger exports and a decrease in the deficit on goods.

AP added that there was a 4.6 percent drop ($181.8 billion) in the deficit in goods for the third quarter while the surplus in services rose to $46.2 billion or 4.1 percent which was facilitated by gains in airline ticket sales to foreigners.

Meanwhile, the surplus in income increased to 2.5 per cent ($58.3 billion) in the same quarter. There was also a smaller deficit of $33 billion in unilateral transfers, the category that covers U.S. foreign aid.

The current-account deficit stood at 2.9% of the country's GDP in the third quarter, down from 3.3% in the previous quarter and the smallest percentage since the fourth quarter of 2009.

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