NEW DELHI (dataLEADS/ ANN) — The US imports more from Asian countries than it exports and as per available data the US runs trade deficits with most of Asian countries except Singapore. The US has trade surplus of $8 billion with Singapore.

While the US imports $985 billion from Asia, the total value of its exports to the region is $452 billion, as per the data from USA Census Bureau. The US shipped $116 billion of goods to China in 2016 but it imported goods worth $463 billion from China. The result is a US trade deficit of $347 billion, the largest of any US trading partner.

Experts point out that a lower standard of living, which allows companies in China to pay lower wages to workers and an exchange rate that is partially fixed to the dollar is the reason for the trade deficit.

Other Asian countries which the US has a huge trade deficit with are Japan ($69 billion), Vietnam ($32 billion), South Korea ($28 billion), and Malaysia ($25 million).

With India, the US has a trade deficit of $24 billion, with Thailand $19 billion and with Taiwan and Indonesia it has $13 billion respectively, besides countries like Philippines, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal although the trade deficit does not exceed $2 billion with any of them.

With Asean nations, US goods and services trade totalled $241.7 billion in 2013 while the US goods and services trade deficit with Asean countries was $40.7 billion in the same year, as per the office of the United States Trade Representative.

US President Donald Trump has been vocal about his country’s large trade deficit.Blaming unfair trade practices by the trade partners of US, he has also tasked the US commerce department to investigate the trade deficit of countries against the US like China, Japan, Germany, South Korea, Canada and India.

The US trade deficit had risen to its highest level since January this year while the trade deficit with China also saw a sharp spike during that period, as per the US commerce department. — VNS