US goods trade deficit up in May

NEW YORK

The US goods trade deficit rose 11.1% from the previous month to $96.6 billion in May, according to data released Thursday.

The Commerce Department said the deficit, which exceeded market expectations of $86.3 billion, was $87 billion in April.

In May, goods exports fell by $9.7 billion to $179.2 billion, while imports remained nearly unchanged at $275.8 billion.

The value of wholesale inventories was down 0.3% month-on-month to $905.4 billion.

The value of retail inventories, however, increased 0.3% to $806.6 billion.