U.S. goods trade deficit hits a record high in November, existing home sales unexpectedly drop

$D.R. Horton (DHI.US)$ $Beazer Homes USA (BZH.US)$ The US merchandise trade deficit widened to the highest level in history in November, as consumer goods imports hit a record high, while exports fell after achieving historic growth in the previous month. The holiday shopping season was affected by the epidemic and industrial supply for the second consecutive year. According to data from the US Department of Commerce, the merchandise trade deficit widened by 17.5% in November, from 83.2 billion US dollars in October to 97.8 billion US dollars. It broke the previous record of US$97 billion set in September.
Existing home sales in the United States unexpectedly fell in November. The National Association of Real Estate (NAR) announced that the pending home sales index for November in the United States fell 2.2% to 122.4 from the previous month. All four regions declined. A Reuters survey estimated an increase of 0.5%.

Article excerpted from Reuters Financial Morning Post