the news the us international trade deficit narrowed 13 in may to 855 billion the commerce department said thursday economists surveyed by the wall street journal had predicted the deficit would widen to a seasonally adjusted 849 billion this is the smallest trade deficit since december’s 789 billion gap the trade deficit has narrowed for two straight months after hitting a record 1077 billion in march key details exports rose 12 to a record 2559 billion in may the fourth straight monthly gain imports rose 06 to 3414 billion but remained below march’s record high adjusted for inflation the real goods deficit increased slightly to 1166 billion in the month big picture the easing of the trade deficit should be positive for gdp growth the us consumer has been the buyer of last resort for foreign goods throughout the pandemic if us consumer demand slows it will be another headwind for the global economy market reaction stocks djia spx were set to open higher on thursday led by the tech sector