Canadian international trade in services, January 2024

Released: 2024-03-07

Canada's monthly international trade in services deficit widened from $0.7 billion in December to $1.3 billion in January. Overall, exports of services decreased 1.6% to $17.0 billion, while imports of services rose 1.5% to $18.3 billion.

Exports of travel services declined 6.4% to $4.5 billion in January on lower spending by US and non-US resident visitors in Canada. Exports of transportation services also recorded a decrease (-3.0%), while commercial services increased 0.7%, partially offsetting the overall decline.

Imports of travel services increased 3.9% to $4.5 billion on higher spending by Canadian resident travellers returning from the United States. Higher payments of financial services were the main contributor to this month's increase in commercial services imports (+1.0%).

To explore the most recent results of Canada's international trade in services in an interactive format, see the International trade monthly interactive dashboard.

Chart 1 
International trade in services

Total imports of goods decreased 3.8% from December to $61.8 billion in January, and total exports of goods declined 1.7% to $62.3 billion. This resulted in the goods trade balance going from a deficit of $0.9 billion in December to a surplus of $0.5 billion in January. Combined, the trade balance for goods and services amounted to a deficit of $0.8 billion in January, a decrease of $0.8 billion compared with December.

The services trade deficit in December, originally reported at $0.7 billion in the previous release, was essentially unchanged with this month's release. Imports of services were revised up by $447 million, while exports of services were revised up by $436 million. The revisions reflected in this month's release are primarily because of the integration of quarterly benchmark data from the balance of payments for the fourth quarter of 2023.

Chart 2 
International trade in services, balances

Chart 3 
Contribution to the monthly change in exports, January 2024

Chart 4 
Contribution to the monthly change in imports, January 2024

Products

The updated Canada and the World Statistics Hub (Catalogue number13-609-X) is available online. This product illustrates the nature and extent of Canada's economic and financial relationship with the world using interactive charts and tables. It provides easy access to information on trade, investment, employment and travel between Canada and a number of countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, China, Japan, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain.

The Methodological Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (Catalogue number13-607-X) is available.

The User Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (Catalogue number13-606-G) is also available. This publication will be updated to maintain its relevance.

Contact information

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