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The
Commerce Department said on Thursday the current account
deficit, which measures the flow of goods, services and
investments into and out of the country, fell 3.6 percent to
$125.3 billion. The third-quarter deficit was revised up to
$129.9 billion from $124.1 billion.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the current account
deficit falling to $118.9 billion in the fourth quarter. For
2015, it totaled $484.1 billion, the largest since 2008.
The fourth-quarter current account deficit represented 2.8
percent of gross domestic product, down from 2.9 percent in the
July-September quarter. The deficit represented 2.7 percent of
GDP for 2015, the largest since 2012 and up from 2.2 percent in
2014.
The current account deficit has declined from a record high of
6.3 percent of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2005, as rising
domestic oil production and lower international oil prices keep
the import bill in check.
The dollar gained 20 percent versus the currencies of the United
States' main trading partners between June 2014 and December
2015, undermining exports. Goods exports fell 3.4 percent to
$366.7 billion in the fourth quarter.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)
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