The US trade deficit narrowed by 5.3 percent in September to $44 billion, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

The trade deficit was below the consensus forecast of Wall Street economists of a deficit of $45 billion.

The smaller-than-expected deficit should add a few percentage points to third-quarter GDP, currently estimated at a two percent growth rate.

Exports inched higher while imports declined in September. The US trade deficit with China widened to $27.8 billion, compared with $22.1 billion in the same month last year. The deficit for the first nine months of the year was $379.1 billion, which was more than the trade gap for the entire year in 2009.

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