Trade Gap Shrank in 1st Quarter
The nation's overall trade deficit improved slightly in the first three months of 1993 thanks to a pickup in spending by foreign tourists and other gains in the service sector, the Commerce Department reported yesterday.</br></br>The deficit in merchandise trade grew, though, reflecting recession-weakened markets in Europe and Japan and some increase in consumer spending in this country.</br></br>In recent years, the United States has enjoyed a large surplus in the trade of services while running an even larger deficit in the trade of goods. While the Commerce Department reports the imbalance between the import and export of U.S. merchandise monthly, the trade balance in services is reported quarterly.</br></br>For the first time. CommerceÛªs report yesterday highlighted the comparison between goods and services with a chart and a separate section in the text.</br></br>The comparison "presents a dear indication of the significance of services trade to the national economy.ÛªÛª said Margaret Wiggleworth, executive director of the Coalition of Service Industries, a Washington-based trade group.