6 April 2009

Canadian trade with the US declines in '08

This article is extracted from the 6 April 2009 edition of “Canadian Transportation & Logistics”.

Trade with Canada’s largest trading partner, as a percentage of overall trade, was down 1.5% in 2008.

The US accounted for 67.5% of Canada’s total merchandise trade in 2008, down from 67.2% the previous year and 74% in 2003.

That’s been offset somewhat by higher trade volumes with other countries. In 2008, Canadian exports to countries other than the US accounted for 22.3% of total exports, up from 14.3% in 2003. Asia-Pacific countries, mostly Japan, led the way with Brazil also playing a significant role….

Canada has also increased its imports from countries other than the US, a trend that’s continued for seven years now. In 2008, 47.6% of Canadian imports were from countries other than the US, up from just 39.4% in 2003. Imports from other countries rose 10.7% in 2008 over the previous year.

China remains Canada’s second most important trading partner for imports, behind the US. …