Aussie trade deficit

Australia Just Posted A Surprise Trade Deficit, And The Aussie Dollar Is Diving

Business Insider, 8 March, 2012

First Japan goes from net exporter to posting trade deficits. And now... Australia.

Here's the report: In January, the country posted a seasonally adjusted A$673 million deficit vs. expectations of a surplus of A$ 1.5 billion, according to Dow Jones.

The Aussie dollar is instantly falling on the news.

We'd caution that pretty much all January stats are a little bit suspect due to the timing of the Chinese New Year. But still. It's a surprise, and perhaps worrisome.

This one-year chart does show that a deficit happened last year, although not as deep.