The U.S. trade deficit widened to a record high in March as businesses rushed to import goods ahead of sweeping tariffs, which dragged GDP into negative territory in the first quarter for the first time in three years amid a huge fall in consumer sentiment. CGTN analyzed the U.S. economic performance in the following graphic.

The U.S. economy shrank by 0.3 percent in the first quarter of this year, which is the first contraction since the start of 2022. The country's trade deficit jumped to a record $140.5 billion in March, and the trade gap in the first quarter cut a record 4.83 percentage points from GDP. Its first-quarter consumer spending has the slowest gain of 1.8 percent since the second quarter of 2023.