The March trade deficit fell by 2.6% but, hold the applause. Imports fell 1.7% due to a fall in demand for crude oil. Exports fell 1.4% as US auto, industrial machinery & food products fell. As if the decline in exports was not bad enough, for the first few months of ’11 the deficit is running at an annual rate of $556 billion, up from $496 last year and up a huge 33% from ’09 when the recession cut deeply in US demand for foreign goods.