OTTAWA
Statistics Canada says the country’s merchandise trade surplus increased to $5.4 billion in September as exports edged higher and imports decreased.
The agency says the result compared with a trade surplus of $5 billion in August and is the highest since May 2022.
Total exports edged up 0.2 per cent in September to $78.6 billion, boosted by exports of crude oil and gold.
Exports of energy products rose 8.2 per cent in September, helped by higher oil prices, while exports of metal and non-metallic mineral products, which includes unwrought gold, increased 8.6 per cent.
Exports of unwrought gold surged 16.8 per cent and contributed the most to the monthly gain.
Total imports fell 0.3 per cent in September to $73.2 billion as imports of motor vehicles and parts fell 9.1 per cent in the month.
Higher shipments of gold and energy to the United States increased exports to the U.S. by 0.7 per cent, widening Canada’s trade surplus with its biggest trading partner to $12.3 billion, from $12.1 billion in August, Statistics Canada said.
This took Canada’s share of exports to the U.S. past 70 per cent for the first time in 13 months.
Excluding gold and energy, exports in September dropped 5.6 per cent as a set of new tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump hurt Canadian exports.
Statscan said that many export categories such as consumer goods, electronic and electrical equipment and parts and industrial machinery showed significant decreases as these were hit by Trump’s new tariffs.
Trump, whose Republican party lost control of both the chambers of Congress in Tuesday’s mid-term elections, slapped a set of new tariffs on Canadian exports after trade talks collapsed this summer.
However, this week both the countries indicated that talks for a renewed trade deal have intensified.
Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a trade surplus of $4.1 billion in September, slightly down from an upwardly adjusted $4.95 billion in August.
In volume terms, total exports fell four per cent, while imports fell 2.5 per cent.
Exports to countries other than the United States fell 1.1 per cent in September while imports dropped 1.4 per cent, Statscan said.
Total imports dropped 0.3 per cent in September led by motor vehicle and parts and consumer goods.
The monthly goods trade number is an important indicator of how Canadian exporters are faring and adapting after months of U.S. tariffs. It also shows how the war in Iran has helped Canadian export revenues as crude oil and product prices have risen.
e2gold.ca reported in November that a Democratic Congress is unlikely to curb Trump's trade war against Canada, as the president's tariff powers are on firm legal ground.
This story was written by the e2gold.ca newsroom from reporting by BNN Bloomberg and The Globe and Mail. Quotes are checked word for word against that reporting.