July’s $4.9B trade deficit was the sixth straight, tracking just below estimates of $4.7B but improving slightly versus June’s ~$6B…

… thanks to a 0.7% drop in imports, driven entirely by industrial machinery - which had a big June on the back of a $2B one-time shipment for an offshore oil project.

Exports jumped 0.9% due to a continued recovery in energy products and a rebound in vehicles, more than offsetting weakness in metal products…

… which were dragged lower by a 12% drop in precious metals and 31% decline in aluminum - the fourth straight as tariffs grip the category, down 45% Y/Y.

Despite that, U.S. exports jumped 5% in July - grinding higher for the fourth straight month…

… and nullifying the second straight drop in international exports, which fell 9% - led by a 29% decline in goods sent to the UK.

With trade talks progressing slowly, expect the monthly deficits to keep stacking.

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