Surging imports pushed up the US trade deficit by 18 percent in September, official data showed on Friday in a sign of improving trade flows and a healing global economy.
The goods and services trade gap rose to 36.5 billion dollars, the highest since January, from a revised 30.8 billion dollars in August, the Commerce Department reported.
The figure was higher than anticipated by most economists.
The report showed a rise in both imports and exports, underscoring an improvement in trade flows that had fallen with the global economic slump.
Total September exports were up nearly three percent to 132 billion dollars while imports amounted to 168.4 billion dollars, rising by a hefty 5.8 percent in the biggest percentage increase since March 1993.
Data also showed that the politically sensitive US trade gap with China reached its highest level in nearly a year, at 22.1 billion dollars from the previous month's 20.2 billion dollars.
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