Statistics Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Canadian international merchandise trade

Warning View the most recent version.

Archived Content

Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please "contact us" to request a format other than those available.

Related subjects

December 2009 (Previous release)

Canada's merchandise exports and imports both advanced in December on the strength of automotive products. Exports rose 1.7% and imports increased 1.8%. As a result, Canada's trade deficit with the world widened to $246 million in December from $201 million in November.

 Exports and imports

Exports grew to $32.2 billion in December from $31.7 billion in November. This fourth consecutive monthly gain was due to a 2.1% increase in volumes, while prices fell 0.4%. Automotive products were responsible for nearly two-thirds of the growth, and were followed by machinery and equipment and energy products. Exports of industrial goods and materials declined in December.

Since May, with the exception of August, exports have been on the rise. However, the export value for December 2009 remained 8.0% below the value recorded in December 2008.

Imports increased to $32.4 billion in December from $31.9 billion in November, the result of volumes rising 1.1% and prices increasing 0.7%. For the second consecutive month, automotive products led the gain, representing more than half the growth in imports in December. Industrial goods and materials and energy products also increased, while machinery and equipment decreased during the month.

Note to readers

Merchandise trade is one component of Canada's international balance of payments, which also includes trade in services, investment income, current transfers as well as capital and financial flows.

International merchandise trade data by country are available on both a balance of payments and a customs basis for the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom. Trade data for all other individual countries are available on a customs basis only. Balance of payments data are derived from customs data by making adjustments for characteristics such as valuation, coverage, timing and residency. These adjustments are made to conform to the concepts and definitions of the Canadian System of National Accounts.

Data in this release are on a balance of payments basis, seasonally adjusted in current dollars. Constant dollars are calculated using the Laspeyres volume formula.

Revisions

In general, merchandise trade data are revised on an ongoing basis for each month of the current year. Current year revisions are reflected in both the customs and balance of payments based data. Revisions to customs based data for the previous year are released on a quarterly basis. Revisions to balance of payments based data for the three previous years are released annually in June.

Factors influencing revisions include late receipt of import and export documentation, incorrect information on customs forms, replacement of estimates with actual figures, changes in classification of merchandise based on more current information, and changes to seasonal adjustment factors.

Revised data are available in the appropriate CANSIM tables.

The gain in imports in December represented the second consecutive monthly increase. Overall, imports remained 9.1% below the level registered in December 2008.

Led by passenger cars, exports to the United States rose 2.9% to $24.1 billion, surpassing the 2.0% gain in imports. As a result, Canada's trade surplus with the United States grew to $3.7 billion in December from $3.4 billion in November.

Exports to countries other than the United States fell 1.8%, while imports from these countries increased 1.5%. Consequently, Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States widened to $3.9 billion in December from $3.6 billion in November.

Higher volumes of automotive products lead the gain in exports

Exports of automotive products increased 8.1% to $4.5 billion, as volumes rose 11.3%. Exports of passenger cars increased 11.7% to replenish inventories of strong selling Canadian manufactured models. Exports of passenger cars have been on an upward trend since May 2009. Motor vehicle parts and trucks also posted gains in December.

Exports of machinery and equipment grew 3.4% to $6.3 billion, due to rising volumes. Higher exports of aircraft and industrial machinery were the main factors behind the increase. Declining exports of telecommunication equipment mitigated the gain in the sector.

Energy products exports were up 1.5% to $7.8 billion, the result of a 5.7% gain in prices, as volumes fell 3.9%. Exports of natural gas grew 5.8%, and have been rising since May 2009. Before this period, exports of natural gas had declined for 10 consecutive months, as inventories remained high as a result of weak demand. Exports of petroleum and coal products increased 5.0%, while exports of electricity declined 22.6%, moderating the growth in the sector.

Other crude non-metallic minerals largely accounted for the decrease in exports of industrial goods and materials, which fell 1.1% to $6.8 billion. Exports of nickel ores and precious metals also declined, while iron ores posted a gain.

Imports rise on the strength of automotive products

Imports of automotive products increased 6.0% to $5.8 billion, continuing the upward trend that began in June 2009. Imports of motor vehicle parts increased 11.1%, reflecting the higher demand for vehicles from the United States. Imports of passenger cars grew 3.2%, led by imports of cars from overseas. Trucks and other motor vehicles also posted gains.

Imports of industrial goods and materials grew 3.0% to $6.3 billion as volumes increased 2.0%. Imports of metals in ores, namely iron ores, grew 17.1% and were followed by precious metals, which gained 12.9% in December.

Imports of energy products grew 5.4% to $3.3 billion as prices rose 7.2%. Imports of crude petroleum grew 17.0%, while imports of coal and other related products declined in December. The gain in imports of energy products represented the third consecutive monthly increase.

Imports of machinery and equipment fell 2.4% to $8.6 billion as imports of aircraft and other transportation equipment declined 16.6%. Other communication equipment, such as high definition flat panel televisions, smart phones and digital cameras, were also a factor behind the decline in the sector.

 Trade balance

Available on CANSIM: tables 228-0001 to 228-0003, 228-0033, 228-0034, 228-0041 to 228-0043 and 228-0047 to 228-0057.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey numbers, including related surveys, 2201, 2202 and 2203.

These data are available in the Canadian international merchandise trade database.

The December 2009 issue of Canadian International Merchandise Trade, Vol. 63, no. 12 (65-001-X, free), is now available from the Key resource module of our website under Publications.

Current account data (which incorporate merchandise trade statistics, service transactions, investment income and transfers) are available quarterly in Canada's Balance of International Payments (67-001-X, free).

Data on Canadian international merchandise trade for January will be released on March 11. The 2009 annual review for Canadian international merchandise trade will be released on April 6.

For more information, contact Sharon Nevins (toll-free 1-800-294-5583; 613-951-9798). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Mychèle Gagnon (613-951-0994), International Trade Division.

Table 1

Merchandise trade
  December 2008 November 2009r December 2009 November to December 2009 December 2008 to December 2009
  Seasonally adjusted, $ current
  $ millions % change
Principal trading partners          
Exports          
United States 25,671 23,435 24,109 2.9 -6.1
Japan 951 713 664 -6.9 -30.2
European Union1 3,591 2,735 2,629 -3.9 -26.8
Other OECD countries2 1,241 1,474 1,335 -9.4 7.6
All other countries 3,520 3,304 3,453 4.5 -1.9
Total 34,974 31,660 32,190 1.7 -8.0
Imports          
United States 22,432 20,016 20,411 2.0 -9.0
Japan 830 777 784 0.9 -5.5
European Union1 3,834 3,402 3,369 -1.0 -12.1
Other OECD countries2 2,226 2,299 2,349 2.2 5.5
All other countries 6,373 5,368 5,522 2.9 -13.4
Total 35,695 31,861 32,436 1.8 -9.1
Balance          
United States 3,239 3,419 3,698 ... ...
Japan 121 -64 -120 ... ...
European Union1 -243 -667 -740 ... ...
Other OECD countries2 -985 -825 -1,014 ... ...
All other countries -2,853 -2,064 -2,069 ... ...
Total -721 -201 -246 ... ...
Principal commodity groupings          
Exports          
Agricultural and fishing products 3,401 2,921 2,866 -1.9 -15.7
Energy products 6,894 7,676 7,793 1.5 13.0
Forestry products 2,011 1,613 1,630 1.1 -18.9
Industrial goods and materials 7,139 6,900 6,827 -1.1 -4.4
Machinery and equipment 8,218 6,067 6,273 3.4 -23.7
Automotive products 4,549 4,148 4,482 8.1 -1.5
Other consumer goods 1,642 1,440 1,374 -4.6 -16.3
Special transactions trade3 674 495 523 5.7 -22.4
Other balance of payments adjustments 446 399 423 6.0 -5.2
Imports          
Agricultural and fishing products 2,540 2,420 2,394 -1.1 -5.7
Energy products 3,205 3,129 3,299 5.4 2.9
Forestry products 215 196 198 1.0 -7.9
Industrial goods and materials 7,504 6,131 6,312 3.0 -15.9
Machinery and equipment 10,609 8,799 8,587 -2.4 -19.1
Automotive products 5,248 5,423 5,751 6.0 9.6
Other consumer goods 5,181 4,695 4,855 3.4 -6.3
Special transactions trade3 493 379 346 -8.7 -29.8
Other balance of payments adjustments 701 688 694 0.9 -1.0
revised
not applicable
The European Union includes Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and United Kingdom.
Other countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) include Australia, Canada, Iceland, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea, Switzerland and Turkey.
These are mainly low valued transactions, value of repairs to equipment, and goods returned to country of origin.
Note(s):
Totals may not equal the sum of their components.