President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the nation’s trade deficit, which the Commerce Department reported Wednesday reached a new record high.

The U.S. ended 2024 with the second-largest trade deficit on record — and China and Mexico were the countries that benefited most from sending goods to America. Canada? Not so much.

Data released Wednesday morning by the Commerce Department showed that U.S. imports of goods and services grew 6.6 percent to a record $4.1 trillion, as Americans bought large amounts of auto parts, weight-loss drugs, computers and food from other countries.

The U.S. trade deficit widened sharply in December as imports surged to a record high against the backdrop of tariff threats. The trade gap increased 24.7% to $98.4 billion, the highest since March 2022, from a revised $78.9 billion in November, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis said on Wednesday.

The trade deficit surged in December and the U.S. finished 2024 with the second largest gap ever, perhaps in part because some businesses sought to bring in more imports before President Trump raised tariffs.

The U.S. trade deficit grew again at the end of last year as exports slipped, widening a gap the new administration has vowed to address. Imports increased 3.5% on the month in December, while exports fell 2.

The U.S. trade deficit widened sharply in December as imports surged to a record high against the backdrop of tariff threats, which might have prompted businesses to rush purchases of foreign-made goods like finished metals and computers.