Record oil prices in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and a drop in overall exports helped push the US trade deficit to a record $66.1 billion in September to break the previous high of $60.4 billion set in February.
The record trade gap was much wider than a mid-point forecast of $61 billion made by Wall Street economists.
The Commerce Department said the deficit widened 11.4 per cent from August, the largest month-to-month jump since June 2004.
US crude oil prices hit a record $70.85 per barrel following Katrina, which hit the US Gulf Coast on August 29th, shutting down much of the region's oil-producing and refining capacity.
Oil import prices averaged a record $57.32 per barrel in September, helping push the trade deficit with Opec countries to a record $9.1 billion, as US exports to the oil-producing countries plummeted.
Imports of food, animal feed and beverages and industrial supplies and materials also hit records and imports of services were near all-time highs, the Commerce Department said.
US exports tumbled 2.6 per cent to $105.2 billion, the biggest setback since the September 2001 attacks on the United States. In addition to the Gulf port problems, a strike at aircraft maker Boeing took a big bite out of commercial aircraft exports, which fell $2.4 billion to $925 million.
However, exports of autos and auto parts, as well as consumer goods, hit records.
The politically sensitive trade deficit with China hit a record $20.1 billion in September, as imports from that country rose to a record $23.3 billion.