Following strong increases in January, Canadian merchandise exports and imports decreased in February. Exports were down 2.4%, while imports decreased 1.3%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade surplus with the world narrowed from $1.2 billion in January to $422 million in February. The February surplus is close to the typical bounds for monthly revisions to imports and exports.
After increasing 3.5% in January, total exports fell 2.4% to $65.0 billion in February. All product sections decreased except farm, fishing and intermediate food product exports (+2.1%), which rose for the fifth time in the last six months.
After increasing 3.6% in January, total imports fell 1.3% to $64.6 billion in February. Despite the monthly decrease, import values remain higher than the November and December 2022 levels, when declines were also observed. In February 2023, 8 of the 11 product sections fell. In real (or volume) terms, total imports were down 0.8%.
Exports to countries other than the United States decreased 7.2% in February, following a 6.3% increase in January. Lower exports to the United Kingdom (gold), India (miscellaneous products) and Iraq (aircraft and wheat) were partly offset by higher exports to Hong Kong (miscellaneous products) and China (agricultural products and coal).
Imports from countries other than the United States rose 1.3% in February. A sharp increase in imports from Ireland (pharmaceutical products) was largely offset by the decline in imports from Switzerland (pharmaceutical products and nickel), Belgium (pharmaceutical products) and Italy (other industry-specific manufacturing machinery).
Canada's merchandise trade deficit with countries other than the United States widened from $7.4 billion in January to $8.9 billion in February.
Exports to the United States fell 0.9% in February, while imports decreased 2.8%. As a result, Canada's trade surplus with the United States widened from $8.6 billion in January to $9.3 billion in February. This was the third consecutive monthly increase in the trade surplus with the United States.
This is an excerpt from the 05 April 2023 edition of The Daily from Statistics Canada.