U.S. May Regain Top Exporter Status : Trade: A new GATT study says the battle to reduce the trade deficit is far from over, however.

The United States appears certain to regain its place as the world’s top merchandise exporter this year, but a drive to reduce its multibillion-dollar trade deficit has lost momentum, according to a GATT report released early today.

U.S. merchandise exports rose by 15% for the first nine months of 1989, more than double the increases recorded by Japan and West Germany, the 96-nation trade watchdog said.

“The U.S. thus seems certain to regain this year its spot as the world’s leading exporter in terms of the dollar value of merchandise exports, a position which it relinquished to the Federal Republic of (West) Germany in 1986,” said the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in its annual survey of international trade developments.

But the 15% U.S. export growth was sharply below the 29% increase registered in the first nine months of 1988. And growth of imports to the United States slowed only slightly to 8%, down 1%, the report said.

“As the difference between export and import growth narrowed sharply, the reduction of the United States’ trade deficit lost momentum,” said GATT.

In the first nine months of this year, the U.S. trade deficit totaled a seasonally adjusted $80.42 billion, down from $87.94 in the year-ago period.

But for the year as a whole the decline in the current account deficit--which includes trade in services as well as merchandise--was likely to be smaller than this, GATT said.

GATT, which sets the rules for about 80% of international trade, criticized countries with trade deficits that pressure states with surpluses to redress their current account imbalances.

Washington retaliates against countries it sees as protectionist but such a stance could be inconsistent with GATT’s international trade rules and would not bring about a lasting reduction in imbalances, the report said.

Present indications were that world production increased by 3% in 1989 and trade by 7%--modestly below 1988 performances--and the outlook was for somewhat slower rates in 1990, the report said.

The strongest impetus next year was expected to come from countries in West Europe and Asia. The economies of the United States, Canada and Britain were likely to grow at below-average rates for developed countries, with West European countries recording average figures, and Japan registering the highest rate.

Economic reforms in East Europe were expected to encourage greater trade with nations outside the region accompanied by a demand for substantial inflows of capital goods.

The situation of highly indebted nations and the least developed countries continued to be serious, and their shares of world merchandise trade was well below that of a decade ago.