U.S. Trade Deficit Narrows as Imports Fall Sharply

From Nytimes.com

As imports plunged and exports stabilized, the United States trade deficit narrowed to its lowest levels in nine years. The trade deficit, which measures the gap between imports and exports, fell to $26 billion in February, from a revised $36 billion in January.

Some economists said the rise in exports would have a positive effect on the country’s first-quarter gross domestic product, and represented another data point contributing to hopes that the economy was beginning to bottom out after more than a year of swift declines.