Zim Records Surplus of $32 Million in Trade With U.SWASHINGTON DC — The United States Department of Commerce says in the three quarters of this year, Zimbabwe has recorded a trade surplus of $32 million in trade with America. Economists have welcomed the development as the country continues to struggle to recover economically with the trade deficit, however, widening to more than three billion in the first eight months of the year. According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat), by August this year alone, Zimbabwe had imported goods worth more than $5 billion against more than $2 billion in exports. Trade with U.S is improving though Washington introduced economic sanctions on Zimbabwe through the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 (ZIDERA). Harare says this Act has crippled Zimbabwe’s economic recovery efforts. But the United States trade representative says Zimbabwe is currently ranked the U.S’s 168 largest goods trading partner in the world. “Zimbabwe is currently our 168th largest goods trading partner with $106 million in total (exports plus imports) goods trade during 2012. Goods exports totaled $54 million; Goods imports totaled $53 million. The U.S. goods trade surplus with Zimbabwe was $1 million in 2012,” said the U.S trade representative. U.S. goods exports to Zimbabwe in 2011 were $54 million, down 13.1% from 2011. Zimbabwe was the United States' 142nd largest supplier of goods imports in 2012 and the U.S. goods trade surplus with Zimbabwe was $1 million in 2012, 89.9% less than in 2011. Zimbabwe exports minerals such as iron and steel, nickel, spices, coffee, tea, tobacco, hides and skins to the U.S while Zimbabwe imports machinery, pharmaceutical products, vehicles, optic and medical instruments, and electrical machinery. Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries president Charles Msipa told VOA Studio 7 the trade surplus is positive for Zimbabwe. For more details on trade between Zimbabwe and U.S open this link: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c7960.html