US Trade Deficit Graph, China vs Rest of World 1990 to 2024

Key points

The graph shows the US goods trade deficit from 1990 to the third quarter of 2024 as a 12 month rolling total, split into China and the rest of the world.
Between the third quarter of 2018 and the third quarter of 2024, the deficit with China fell from $402 billion to $287 billion, while the deficit with the rest of the world rose from $443 billion to $854 billion.
The total deficit therefore grew, from about $845 billion to about $1,141 billion (our sums of the chart’s figures).
Labelled events include NAFTA (1994), the WTO’s creation (1995), China joining the WTO (2001), the 2008 financial crisis, the 2018 US and China trade war and the 2020 pandemic.
Econovis reads the shift as trade possibly rerouted through other countries after tariffs on Chinese goods [2].

The US trade deficit graph in text

Title: “U.S. Trade Deficit Shifts: 28% Decline with China but 96% Surge with Rest of World”. Chart heading: U.S. Goods Trade Deficit (Billion US$, 12-Month Rolling Sum). The stacked area chart has China in red (bottom, with a Chinese flag icon) and the Rest of World in navy (top). The y axis runs from 0 to -1,400 in steps of 200, with bigger deficits plotted higher. The x axis runs from 1990 to 3Q2024.

Point on the chart	China	Rest of World	Total (our sum)
Third quarter 2018 (start of the trade war)	$402 billion	$443 billion	$845 billion
Third quarter 2024 (end of chart)	$287 billion	$854 billion	$1,141 billion

Event labels, left to right: Early 1990s, End of Cold War; 1994, NAFTA Establishment; 1995, WTO Establishment; 2001, China Accession to WTO; Surging Oil Trade Deficit (a highlighted oval over the mid 2000s); 2008, Global Financial Crisis; 2018, The Onset of the U.S.-China Trade War; 2020, COVID-19 Pandemic.

Footer: Source of Primary Data: U.S. Census; www.econovis.net; @econovisuals; Econovis “EV” logo.

What the 28% and 96% refer to

The headline percentages come from Econovis’s notes, which compare the first nine months of 2018 with the first nine months of 2024 [1]. Over that period the overall US trade deficit grew by 37%, from $635 billion to $872 billion. The deficit with China fell by 28%, from $301 billion to $217 billion, while the deficit with the rest of the world rose by 96%, from $334 billion to $655 billion [1].

The chart’s own callouts are 12 month rolling totals. On those figures the China deficit fell by about 29% and the rest of world deficit rose by about 93% (our calculations), close to but not the same as the title.

A trade shift, not a smaller deficit

In a related post, Econovis measures the same change against the size of the US economy. From the third quarter of 2018 to the third quarter of 2024, the deficit with China fell from 2.0% to 1.0% of GDP, while the deficit with the rest of the world rose from 2.2% to 3.0% [2]. It says this may reflect trade rerouted through other countries to get around restrictions on US and China trade [2].

US Census Bureau figures show the same direction for calendar years. The goods deficit with China was $418.2 billion in 2018 and $297.0 billion in 2024. It fell further, to $202.7 billion, in 2025 [3].

Notes on this infographic

Title percentages. The 28% and 96% in the title use nine month totals from Econovis’s notes, not the 12 month figures printed on the chart [1]. The chart figures give about 29% and 93%.
Callout positions. The value markers are placed for readability and do not sit at their exact height on the y axis.
Goods only. The chart covers trade in goods only; trade in services is not included.
Negative axis. The y axis is labelled with negative numbers because the values are deficits.

Questions about the US trade deficit with China

Has the US trade deficit with China gone down?

Yes, the US goods deficit with China fell by 28%, from $301 billion to $217 billion, comparing the first nine months of 2018 with the first nine months of 2024 [1]. Over the same period the deficit with the rest of the world rose by 96%, from $334 billion to $655 billion [1]. On the chart's 12 month rolling totals, the China deficit fell from $402 billion to $287 billion between the third quarters of 2018 and 2024.

Has the total US trade deficit grown since the trade war with China?

Yes, the overall US trade deficit grew by 37%, from $635 billion to $872 billion, between the first nine months of 2018 and the same period of 2024 [1]. On the chart's 12 month figures, the total rose from about $845 billion to about $1,141 billion (our sums). The fall with China was outweighed by a rise with the rest of the world, from $443 billion to $854 billion.

What is the US trade deficit with China as a share of GDP?

The US goods deficit with China fell from 2.0% to 1.0% of GDP between the third quarter of 2018 and the third quarter of 2024, according to Econovis [2]. Over the same period the deficit with the rest of the world rose from 2.2% to 3.0% of GDP [2]. Econovis says this may reflect trade rerouted through other countries to get around restrictions on US and China trade [2].

What was the US trade deficit with China in 2025?

The US goods deficit with China was $202.7 billion in 2025, according to US Census Bureau figures [3]. That continued a fall from $418.2 billion in 2018 and $297.0 billion in 2024 [3]. These are calendar year totals, while the chart uses 12 month rolling sums and ends in the third quarter of 2024. Both cover trade in goods only, not services.