US trade balances improving vs expected – ING

FXStreet (Guatemala) – James Knightley, analyst at ING bank explained that the US trade balance widened marginally in May to $41.9bn from $40.7bn, but this was better than the $42.7bn anticipated by the market.

Key Quotes:

“There was significant weakness in the civilian aircraft subsection, which was expected given the Boeing shipment figures already released. There were also record imports of automobiles. However, the Petroleum balance narrowed to -$8.381bn, the smallest figure since February 2002.”

“If petroleum was excluded the deficit would have widened 6.5% on the month, which at the margin may be attributable to dollar strength while weakness in Asian demand has also been a factor.”

“Nonetheless, domestic activity remains firm with employment and confidence both showing clear improvements. Consequently, we still favour the Fed raising rates this year with September looking the most likely start point.”

James Knightley, analyst at ING bank explained that the US trade balance widened marginally in May to $41.9bn from $40.7bn, but this was better than the $42.7bn anticipated by the market.

(Market News Provided by FXstreet)