Canadian export volumes reached an all-time high in April and fianlly surpassed their pre-COVID levels.
Canada’s merchandise exports increased 2.5% to $64.8 billion in April, while imports edged down 0.2% to $62.9 billion, according to Statistics Canada.
In volume terms, real exports and real imports were both up, 2.8% and 0.9%, respectively. As a result, export volumes reached an all-time high and finally surpassed their pre-COVID levels.
“With Canada’s trade surplus widening in April, net trade is on track to contribute positively to second quarter GDP growth. That said, the global economy remains on shaky ground amid high interest rates and, as such, world trade growth is expected to remain subdued over the near term,” comments Alan Arcand, chief economist with Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters
Breaking the numbers down, Canada’s trade surplus with the U.S. widened from $7.2 billion in March to $9.5 billion in April, while our trade deficit with the rest of the world widened from $7.0 billion to $7.5 billion.
Exports of motor vehicles and parts rose 7.4% to $8.5 billion in April, yet another sign that supply chain disruptions continue to ease. The gain was driven by both exports of passenger cars and light trucks and exports of engines and parts.
“Gains in those product sections were sufficient to overcome notable declines in exports of consumer goods (-5.5%) and farm, fishing and intermediate products (-6.4%). Although this was the second straight monthly decline for exports of farm, fishing and intermediate products, they were still up 32.5% year-over-year,” Arcand points out.
