Monarch Discusses the Good Side of a Trade Deficit

Monarch Discusses the Good Side of a Trade Deficit with Marketplace

July 28, 2026

Marketplace

Ryan Monarch

Economics Department

Trade, Development, and Political Economy Working Group

Economic Policy

International Affairs

Trade

United States

Marketplace

Ryan Monarch

While the U.S. trade deficit for goods shrank about 4% in June compared to the month prior, it still remained high, with the country importing $101.5 billion more goods than it exported in the month—despite tariffs. However, Ryan Monarch, associate professor of economics, tells Marketplace that a trade deficit is not necessarily a bad thing. Monarch says, “If you have a trade deficit, another way of saying that is that your country is a place in which a lot of other countries really want to invest, where they want to put their money into.”

Read or listen to the full story on Marketplace, "The trade deficit fell in June, but remains high."