WASHINGTON — The US current account trade deficit grew this winter to its widest imbalance in three years. A big increase in imports of oil, cars and machinery and a drop in US earnings on overseas investments drove the increase.

The deficit in the current account jumped 15.7 percent to $137.3 billion in the January-March quarter. That’s up from $118.7 billion in the final three months of last year, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

The current account is the broadest measure of trade. It tracks the sale of merchandise and services between nations as well as investment flows.
US exports of goods increased 1.6 percent to $388.5 billion. But imports rose a larger 2 percent to $583 billion.

America’s surplus in services, things such as airline tickets and financial services, increased slightly to $43.5 billion but the US surplus in investment income declined by $12.3 billion to $47.6 billion. This change reflected lower payments to Americans on their overseas investments and higher payments to foreigners on their US investments.

Economists watch the current account as sign of how much the United States needs to borrow from foreigners. — AP