Trade gap narrows in August

In a rare piece of positive economic data, lower energy prices in July sent the trade deficit down 3.5% in August, according to data from the Department of Commerce. The August trade deficit shrunk to $59.1 billion from a downwardly revised estimate of $61.3 billion in July. Exports fell 2% in August to $164.7 billion, marking the largest one-month drop since June 2004. Meanwhile, imports fell 2.4% to $223.9 billion. The cost of energy imports declined to $43.7 billion in August, marking a $7.3 billion decline from $51 billion in July. The trade deficit with China increased to $25.3 billion, up $400 million from July. The deficit was $22.5 billion in the year-ago period.