Canada's exports rose 0.8% in October, while imports increased 0.5% mainly on higher imports of energy products. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade deficit with the world narrowed slightly from $1.2 billion in September to $1.1 billion in October...
Increased imports of energy products
Total imports rose 0.5% to $51.0 billion in October, despite decreases in 7 of 11 product sections. Total imports were up 1.5% in the first 10 months of the year compared with the same period in 2018. In real (or volume) terms, imports increased 0.8% in October.
Imports of energy products were up 8.9% in October, mainly on higher imports of crude oil and crude bitumen (+8.5%), which increased largely due to higher prices. This was the eighth monthly increase for imports of crude oil in 2019. Imports of natural gas (+46.2%) and refined petroleum products (+6.8%) also contributed to the increase in energy product imports in October.
Imports of motor vehicles and parts fell 3.3% in October to $9.3 billion. This was the fifth consecutive monthly decrease for this product section and the lowest level observed in 2019. Imports of passenger cars and light trucks (-4.7%) were responsible for most of the decline, with labour disruptions affecting a number of North American auto assembly plants in September and October. Exports of motor vehicle engines and parts (-12.9%) were also impacted by these events in October...
This has been excerpted from a 5 December 2019 release by Statistics Canada.