For goods only, the deficit with the world surged to a record $891.3 billion in 2018 from $807.5 billion the prior year. The merchandise deficits with Mexico and the European Union also hit records……Ironically, the biggest culprit was China, as the deficit with Beijing – the target of Trump’s trade war – hit a record $419.2 billion in 2018, following the previously noted plunge in Chinese imports from the US.
