The U.S. trade deficit in goods rose in August and stood near a record high, as retailers imported more consumer goods ahead of the holiday shopping season. The trade gap in goods widened 0.9% to $87.6 billion in August, the government said Tuesday. Goods imports increased 0.8% to $236.6 billion — just a hair below the all-time high set in June. American exports, meanwhile, moved up 0.7% to $149 billion. That’s a record high. The government on Tuesday also said wholesale inventories jumped 1.2% in August while retail inventories inched up 0.1%, based on an “advanced” looked at early data. Big picture: Already high ... (full story)