(Adds details from the report)
WASHINGTON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - U.S. imports fell by a record 5.6 percent in September and exports suffered their steepest drop since September 2001, narrowing the monthly trade deficit slightly more than expected, a U.S. Commerce Department report showed on Thursday.
A record drop in imported oil prices and the lowest auto and auto parts imports since February 2004 helped trim the monthly trade gap to $56.5 billion, slightly below the consensus estimate of $57 billion made by Wall Street analysts.
The sharp fall in trade is another sign of the toll the global financial crisis is taking on economic growth in the United States and abroad. The monthly goods and services trade gap was the lowest since October 2007.
However, U.S. imports from China hit a record $33.1 billion in September, while imports from the European Union fell 3.8 percent and imports from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries slumped 27.1 percent.
Average prices for imported oil dropped a record $12.41 per barrel in September, while the volume of imports was the lowest since February 2003.
Imports of autos and auto parts fell $732 million, or about 3.8 percent, with imports of those goods from Germany, Japan, South Korea and Mexico all showing declines.
U.S. goods exports fell by a record $10.4 billion, with all major categories showing a decline. A sharp drop in exports of capital goods was led by civilian aircraft, after posting big numbers in the two prior months.
U.S. exports to the European Union were the lowest since December 2007 and to China were the lowest since July 2007.
However, the U.S. services trade surplus hit a record $13.1 billion. (Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Andrea Ricci)