The gap in goods and services trade widened 34% from the prior month to $131.4 billion, Commerce Department data showed Thursday. The deficit was larger than all but one estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

The value of imports rose 10% to a record $401.2 billion, while exports increased 1.2%. The figures aren't adjusted for inflation.

Canada's trade surplus with the US jumped to a record at the start of the year, driven by exports of cars, auto parts and oil, separate data from Statistics Canada showed Thursday.

But, perhaps most notably, the January flurry of imports was broad and included a surge in inbound shipments of industrial supplies and materials. 

Within that category, imports of finished metal shapes that include gold bullion jumped $20.5 billion, marking a a second month of steep increases.

For an even clearer picture of the magnitude of the shift in bullion imports, we note that the Swiss trade deficit (where all that bullion is coming from) rocketed higher (an order of magnitude from historical norms)...

As we detailed here, while everyone has been distracted by talk of the tariff-driven arbitrage between COMEX and LBMA (London)...