US Current-Account Deficit Widens to $246B in Q2 2026
The gap grew 15.7% from Q1, reaching 3% of GDP, as the net international investment position hit –$22.42 trillion.
The U.S. current-account deficit expanded sharply in the second quarter of 2026, climbing $33.4 billion to $246.0 billion, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported. The increase of 15.7 percent from the revised first-quarter shortfall of $212.6 billion signals accelerating imbalance in cross-border trade and financial flows.
As a share of the broader economy, the deficit reached 3.0 percent of current-dollar gross domestic product, compared with 2.7 percent in the prior quarter. The widening gap reflects the difference between what the United States pays to the rest of the world and what it receives, encompassing trade in goods, services, income, and transfer payments.
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The U.S. net international investment position — a measure of American residents' overseas assets minus their liabilities to foreign holders — stood at negative $22.42 trillion at the end of June. Total foreign assets held by U.S. residents reached $46.97 trillion, while liabilities owed to foreign investors totaled $69.39 trillion. The net position deteriorated from negative $21.27 trillion at the close of the first quarter, a swing of roughly $1.15 trillion in a single quarter.
The deepening negative investment position underscores the cumulative effect of persistent current-account deficits over decades, which require ongoing foreign capital inflows to finance. Analysts note that the trajectory of both the quarterly trade gap and the investment position will be closely watched as policymakers assess the long-run sustainability of external U.S. borrowing.
Continue reading at U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
