WASHINGTON, Sept 15 - The U.S. current account deficit was virtually unchanged in the second quarter, holding near the record set in the first three months of the year, the government said on Monday. The gap in the current account, the broadest measure of the nation's trade with the rest of the world, narrowed marginally last quarter to $138.67 billion from an upwardly revised $138.71 billion in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said. The trade shortfall was close to financial market expectations. Economists polled by had expected the deficit to grow a bit to $138.0 billion from the $136.1 billion previously reported for the first quarter.
Many analysts believe the huge U.S. trade deficits are unsustainable over the long run and raise the risk of a sharp correction and a weaker dollar. The dollar did move lower against major currencies over the course of the past year, but has shown stability in recent weeks as signs of stronger economic growth have emerged. The department said the shortfall in trade on goods widened to a record $138.0 billion from the first quarter's $136.0 billion, while the surplus in services trade rose to $14.6 billion from $14.4 billion. At the same time, the deficit in government transfer payments, such as foreign aid and Social Security payments to Americans abroad, narrowed to $16.9 billion in the second quarter from $17.3 billion in the first three months of the year.//