US trade deficit in April widens to $63.4 billion; oil costs soar

New York (Platts)--9Jun2006

The US trade deficit widened $1.6 billion to $63.4 billion in April, as
oil import costs soared, according to data released Friday by the Department
of Commerce.

Crude oil import costs jumped $4.56/barrel to $56.82/barrel, the highest
level since September 2005 when import costs hit an all-time high of
$57.42/barrel. Lower overall petroleum imports were unable to offset the surge
in prices. Total crude imports dropped to an average of 9.795 million b/d in
April from 10.08 million b/d in March. Total crude oil imports fell to 293.844
million barrels from 312.479 million barrels. Total energy-related petroleum
product imports edged down to 392.159 million barrels in April from 397.983
million barrels in March.

The deficit with OPEC countries was unchanged at $8.1 billion dollars.

--Linda Rafield, linda_rafield@platts.com

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