A report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday showed a substantial increase in the size of the U.S. trade deficit in the month of September, as imports surged and exports slumped.

The Commerce Department said the trade deficit widened to $84.4 billion in September from a revised $70.8 billion in August.

Economists had expected the trade deficit to jump to $84.1 billion from the $70.4 billion originally reported for the previous month.

The sharp increase in the size of the trade deficit came as the value of imports spiked by 3.0 percent to $352.3 billion, while the value of exports tumbled by 1.2 percent to $267.9 billion.

At 10 am ET, the Institute for Supply Management is due to release its report on service sector activity in the month of October.

The ISM’s services PMI is expected to edge down to 53.8 in October from 54.9 in September, although a reading above 50 would still indicate growth.

At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month’s auction of $42 billion worth of ten-year notes.