In a provocative challenge to traditional economic anxieties, top economist Justin Wolfers is reframing the widening U.S. trade gap not as a fiscal failure, but as an enormous physical “surplus” that signals a historic boom in American material wealth.The ‘Stuff’ SurplusWhile the U.S. Census Bureau announced a sharp rise in the goods and services deficit to $70.3 billion for December 2025, Wolfers argues that the public is looking at the ledger backward.“The U.S. has an enormous trade surplus with the rest ...

In the high-stakes world of global macroeconomics, most leaders treat a Supreme Court defeat as a signal to regroup, consult with legal counsel, and perhaps draft a measured response. President Donald Trump, however, prefers the “geometric progression of spite” model. After the U.S. Supreme Court spent its Friday morning dismantling his administration’s previous tariff framework, the President responded with the economic equivalent of a “hold my beer” moment. By Saturday, a proposed 10% global tariff had al ...

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Economic Data - The personal consumption expenditures price index report, a key inflation gauge for the Federal Reserve, is set to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, along with GDP, consumer spending, and income data [2] - The U.S. trade deficit for 2025 was reported at $901.5 billion, reflecting a 0.2% decrease from the previous year despite the implementation of broad tariffs [3] Retail Sector - Amazon has surpassed Walmart in quarterly revenue for the first time, reporting $187.8 billion in sales for the fourth quarter, compared to Walmart's $180.5 billion [4][5] - Bath & Body Works has launched an authorized storefront on Amazon, expanding its reach beyond its physical stores [6] Housing and Employment Trends - In Silicon Valley, the number of individuals living in RVs has increased significantly, with the share of those sleeping in cars rising from 18% in 2019 to 37% last year [8][9] - The wage gap between job hoppers and those staying in their positions has narrowed to below 2 percentage points, down from a peak of 8.4 points in April 2022, indicating a shift in job market dynamics [10][11]

President Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that his administration's aggressive tariff policies have sparked a "staggering" 78% reduction in the U.S. trade deficit, vowing the nation will soon achieve its first trade surplus in decades. A Milestone In Trade Policy? In an all-caps post on Truth Social, the President lauded the impact of his global “reciprocal tariffs,” which targeted over 100 countries starting in April 2025. Trump attributed the contraction directly to these duties, stating, "The United ...

Tariffs weren’t enough to end America’s import addiction. Last year, in spite of (or because of) the White House’s aggressive tariff campaign, the US trade deficit of goods reached a record high, according to data Thursday from the US Commerce Department. In other words, tariffs haven’t really altered the behavior of US consumers and companies. But according to a JPMorgan report published Thursday, the tariffs are definitely making life tougher for mid-sized companies. SUBSCRIBE:  Receive more of our fre ...

Welcome back to Market on Close. I'm Marley Caden in Chicago alongside Sambatis at the New York Stock Exchange. Some final thoughts on today's session.For me, the US trade deficit came out totaling $91.5% billion for 2025. That was only slightly narrower than the 93.5% billion the year before. Despite our ongoing tariffs, exports rose 6.2% to 3.43% trillion, but imports climbed to 4.33% trillion, pushing the goods deficit.That's the piece that's most impacted by tariff policy to a record $1.24% trillion. De ...

We have a decent amount of grist for the stock market mill this morning, with key earnings reports joining key economic news. Pre-market indexes have slid into the red from early-morning highs, but are leveling off currently: the Dow is -133 points, -0.27%, the S&P 500 -19, -0.28%, the Nasdaq -92, -0.37% and the small-cap Russell 2000 -10, -0.39%.Jobless Claims Remain Historically LowThursday morning Weekly Jobless Claims are out again ahead of today’s open, with an Initial Jobless Claims headline of 206K b ...

Data released Thursday by the Census Bureau showed the overall trade deficit with the world narrowed, the result of an expanding trade surplus in services. ...

Core Insights - There has been progress on the U.S. trade deficit [1] Group 1 - The U.S. trade deficit has shown improvement recently [1]