NORTH AMERICAN TRADE IS UP

BTS Releases North American Surface Trade Numbers for May: May 2012 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 8.3 Percent From May 2011

Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, Canada and Mexico, was 8.3 percent higher in May 2012 than in May 2011, totaling $83.8 billion, unadjusted for inflation (Table 1), according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Adjusted for inflation and exchange rates, the May 2012 total was $60.7 billion in 2004 dollars, up 11.7 percent from May 2011.

BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the May 2012 value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico rose 13.0 percent from May 2008, six months into the recession, and 75.0 percent from May 2009, late in the recession (Table 3). Data in the press release are not adjusted for inflation (except for monthly totals in Figure 1 online).

The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in May increased by 72.6 percent compared to May 2002, a period of 10 years. Imports in May were up 62.5 percent since May 2002, while exports were up 85.9 percent (Table 3). See Transborder Press Releases for historical data.

Surface transportation includes freight movements by truck, rail, pipeline, mail, Foreign Trade Zones, and other modes of transport. In May, 86.5 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moved via land, 9.6 percent moved by vessel, and 3.8 percent moved by air.

The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico increased 5.0 percent in May 2012 from April 2012 (Table 2). Month-to-month changes can be affected by seasonal variations and other factors.

U.S. trade by surface transportation with Mexico has increased at a faster pace than trade with Canada. U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico surface transportation trade in May 2012 both increased compared to May 2011 with U.S.-Canada trade reaching $48.1 billion, a 4.0 percent increase, and U.S.-Mexico trade reaching $35.6 billion, a 14.9 percent increase. For trade statistics by mode, see Table 4 for Canada and Table 6 for Mexico.

In May, Michigan led all states in surface trade with Canada, at $6.5 billion, a 2.6 percent increase from May 2011 (Table 5). Of the top 10 states by value, California had the largest percentage increase over May 2011, at 29.7 percent.

The top commodity category transported between the U.S. and Canada by surface modes of transportation in May was vehicles, valued at $9.5 billion (Table 8).

Texas continued to lead all states in surface trade with Mexico at $12.9 billion, a 15.6 percent increase from May 2011. This amount is the highest on record, surpassing the $12.6 billion in Texas - Mexico trade in March 2012. Of the top 10 states by value, North Carolina had the biggest percentage increase, 39.1 percent (Table 7), primarily because of a $59 million increase from May 2011 in the export of inorganic chemicals. The top commodity category transported between the U.S. and Mexico by surface modes of transportation in May was electrical machinery with $7.6 billion in trade (Table 9).

Technical Note: The BLS indexes used for Figure 1 adjustment may be revised in each of the three months after original publication. For example, index values released in January 2012 will be subject to revision in February, March and April of that year.

For more information, see Transborder Press Releases for previous' press releases and summary tables. See TransBorder Freight Data for data from previous months, and individual state data. BTS has scheduled the release of June TransBorder numbers for Aug. 28.

Table 2. U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Canada and Mexico by Surface Modes of Transportation

(millions of dollars)

SOURCE: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/  

NOTES: Numbers might not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding. The value of trade for all surface modes is not equal to the sum of truck, rail and pipeline modes, it also includes shipments made by mail, foreign trade zones, and other transportation.  For additional detail, please refer to the "Data Fields" section of the TransBorder web page: http://www.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html

Table 3. May 2012 Surface Transportation Trade with Canada and Mexico Compared with May of Prior Years

SOURCE: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/