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The Daily. Friday, June 30, 2000
Canada's exports of services passed the $50-billion mark in 1999 for the first time, reaching $51.8 billion. Sales to foreign clients, which covers travel, transportation, commercial services and government sevices, rose by 6%. Combined with slower growth in services imports - down 3.6% to $57.8 billion - Canada again narrowed its deficit in services trade.
The deficit of $6.1 billion - the difference between services Canada exports and payments to foreign suppliers - stood at its lowest level since 1987, and continued a downward trend after peaking at $13.6 billion in 1993.
A $0.4-billion drop in the commercial services deficit from 1998 reflected stronger receipts from financial services (other than insurance), and for research and development. A higher deficit resumed for insurance services following the impact of large settlements for the ice storm of 1998. Net royalty payments also moved up in 1999.
The deficit on travel dropped to a 12-year low. The decline of $0.2 billion to $1.7 billion reflected higher spending by overseas visitors coming to Canada for both leisure and business purposes. Offsetting this result were higher expenditures by Canadians travelling on business to the United States.
Aggregate estimates are available for telecommunications, environmental services and commercial education from 1996. Indications are that payments outweigh receipts for telecommunications and environmental services, with a surplus for commercial education.
Canada's international transactions in services
| 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $ millions | ||||
| Telecommunications | ||||
| Exports | 1,145 | 1,361 | 1,487 | 1,236 |
| Imports | 1,241 | 1,541 | 1,736 | 1,445 |
| Balance | -96 | -179 | -249 | -208 |
| Environmental services | ||||
| Exports | 185 | 200 | 204 | 213 |
| Imports | 230 | 255 | 271 | 284 |
| Balance | -45 | -55 | -67 | -71 |
| Commercial education (non-institutional) | ||||
| Exports | 117 | 160 | 176 | 190 |
| Imports | 34 | 43 | 60 | 65 |
| Balance | 83 | 116 | 115 | 125 |
Services trade for eight additional countries are added to the 47 already published. Annual data for travel, transportation, commercial and government services are now available for Columbia, Costa Rica, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Russia, Poland, Senegal and Vietnam.
Available on CANSIM: matrices 2064-2107, 3178, 3180-3186, 3188-3190, 3192-3195, and 3197.
Matrices for the eight countries newly released with this publication will be available by July 17.
Canada's international transactions in services, 1999 (67-203-XPB, $40; 67-203-XIB, $30) is now available. See How to order publications.
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Hugh Henderson (613-951-9049; hendhug@statcan.gc.ca), or Denis Caron (613-951-1861; caroden@statcan.gc.ca) Balance of Payments Division.