Trade Gap in U.S. Narrows More Than Forecast as Imports Fall

The gap shrank by 19.2 percent to $40.9 billion from the prior month’s $50.6 billion that was the widest in more than six years, Commerce Department figures showed Wednesday in Washington. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 72 economists called for a deficit of $44 billion. Purchases of foreign-made goods declined after the end of a labor dispute at West Coast ports caused them to jump in March.