Washington (Reuters) - The U.S. current account deficit unexpectedly narrowed in the second quarter, supported by a partial reversal of a large equity disinvestment that had occurred in the previous quarter.
The Commerce Department said on Wednesday the current account gap, which measures the flow of goods, services and investments into and out of the country, fell to $98.51 billion from a revised $102.11 billion shortfall in the first quarter.
That was the smallest gap since the fourth quarter of 2013.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the deficit widening to $114.0 billion from a previously reported $111.2 billion shortfall in the first three months of the year.
A large equity disinvestment resulted in an outflow of $121.71 billion in the first quarter, which the government at that time described as an "atypical" occurrence.
There was a partial reversal in the second quarter, with foreign direct investment inflows increasing $72.01 billion.
The current account deficit represents 2.3 percent of gross domestic product, down from 2.4 percent in the first quarter.
The current account deficit has been gradually shrinking, hitting a 14-year low in the fourth quarter of 2013, helped in part by declining petroleum imports as the nation reduces its dependency on foreign oil.
In the second quarter, goods exports increased 2.3 percent to $408.81 billion. Imports, however, rose 2.8 percent to $597.97 billion.
The surplus on primary income increased to $53.1 billion in the second quarter from $52.4 billion in the first quarter.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)