US current account deficit narrows 1.1% in Q2, lowest in 2 years

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The US current account deficit narrowed 1.1% in the second quarter, compared to the first quarter, according to official data released Thursday.

The current account deficit, which reflects the combined balances on trade in goods and services and income flows between US residents and residents of other countries, narrowed by $2.4 billion to $212.1 billion in the April-June period, said the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

It is the lowest since the second quarter of 2021, while the revised deficit was $214.5 billion in the first quarter.

"The second-quarter deficit was 3.2 percent of current-dollar gross domestic product, up less than 0.1 percent from the first quarter," the BEA said in a statement.

The narrowing in the second quarter "primarily reflected expanded surpluses on services and on primary income that were mostly offset by an expanded deficit on goods," it added.

Exports of goods and services and income received from foreign residents decreased $7.8 billion to $1.15 trillion in the second quarter.

Imports of goods and services and income paid to foreign residents declined $10.2 billion to $1.36 trillion in the April-June period.