U.S. Trade Gap Widened in 2011

This article talks about the widened deficit of U.S. trade deficit as rising consumer spending and restocking by U.S. businesses led imports to grow faster than exports. Domestic economy is pulling in more foreign goods to feed reviving demand. Export growth is continuing but has eased from high levels seen early last year. Exports have been a driver of the U.S. recovery. U.S. trade deficit with China grew sharply in 2011, rising 8.2% from the year before to $295.7 billion. Trade with China is a hot-button issue in this election year and is likely to gain more attention with the visit to Washington by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping.