You are here
December 2009 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 10.5 Percent from December 2008
December 2009 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 10.5 Percent from December 2008
(State Rankings in Tables 5 and 7)
 |
|
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 - Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners Canada and Mexico was 10.5 percent higher in December 2009 than in December 2008, with a value of $58.5 billion, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (Table 1). The increase was the first over the same month of the previous year since September 2008 but the value of trade in December still remained 4.0 percent below the value in December 2007.
BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico fell 0.8 percent in December 2009 from November 2009 (Table 2). Month-to-month changes can be affected by seasonal variations and other factors.
Surface transportation consists largely of freight movements by truck, rail, and pipeline. About 85 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moves by land modes.
The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in December was up 12.3 percent compared to December 2004, and up 36.6 percent compared to December 1999, a period of 10 years (Table 3). Imports in December were up 37.0 percent compared to December 1999, while exports were up 36.2 percent.
U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Canada
U.S.Canada surface transportation trade totaled $35.4 billion in December, up 7.8 percent compared to December 2008 (Table 4). The value of imports carried by truck was 2.3 percent lower in December 2009 compared to December 2008, while the value of exports carried by truck increased 11.2 percent during this period.
Michigan led all states in surface trade with Canada in December with $4.7 billion (Table 5).
U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Mexico
U.S.Mexico surface transportation trade totaled $23.0 billion in December, up 15.0 percent compared to December 2008 (Table 6). The value of imports carried by truck was 15.5 percent higher in December 2009 than December 2008 while the value of exports carried by truck was 10.4 percent higher.
Texas led all states in surface trade with Mexico in December with $7.9 billion (Table 7).
The TransBorder Freight Data are a unique subset of official U.S. foreign trade statistics released by the U.S. Census Bureau. New data are tabulated monthly and historical data are not adjusted for inflation. December TransBorder numbers include data received by BTS as of Feb. 16.
The news release and summary tables can be found at www.bts.gov. More information on TransBorder Freight Data and data from previous months are posted on the BTS website at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/. BTS will release a summary of annual TransBorder data on March 18 and January TransBorder numbers on March 30.
Table 1. Value of Monthly U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Canada and Mexico
(millions of dollars)
| Month | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | Percent Change 2007-2008 | Percent Change 2008-2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60,649 | 65,160 | 47,459 | 7.4 | -27.2 |
| February | 59,667 | 69,406 | 47,938 | 16.3 | -30.9 |
| March | 69,768 | 70,787 | 51,055 | 1.5 | -27.9 |
| April | 65,015 | 74,317 | 49,729 | 14.3 | -33.1 |
| May | 69,423 | 74,128 | 47,881 | 6.8 | -35.4 |
| June | 69,526 | 74,139 | 50,753 | 6.6 | -31.5 |
| July | 61,823 | 71,628 | 51,545 | 15.9 | -28.0 |
| August | 69,158 | 72,254 | 54,254 | 4.5 | -24.9 |
| September | 66,771 | 71,801 | 57,294 | 7.5 | -20.2 |
| October | 74,249 | 72,683 | 61,400 | -2.1 | -15.5 |
| November | 70,352 | 60,661 | 58,922 | -13.8 | -2.9 |
| December | 60,902 | 52,910 | 58,465 | -13.1 | 10.5 |
| Annual | 797,303 | 829,875 | 636,695 | 4.1 | -23.3 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb. 22, 2010.
NOTE: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 2. U.S. Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico by Mode of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | December 2008 | November 2009 | December 2009 | Percent Change Nov. 2009-Dec. 2009 | Percent Change December 2008-2009 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 28,908 | 31,693 | 32,030 | 1.1 | 10.8 |
| Exports | 24,002 | 27,229 | 26,435 | -2.9 | 10.1 | |
| Total | 52,910 | 58,922 | 58,465 | -0.8 | 10.5 | |
| Truck | Imports | 18,042 | 20,236 | 19,223 | -5.0 | 6.5 |
| Exports | 18,576 | 21,225 | 20,600 | -2.9 | 10.9 | |
| Rail | Imports | 5,263 | 6,126 | 6,451 | 5.3 | 22.6 |
| Exports | 3,010 | 3,480 | 3,317 | -4.7 | 10.2 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 4,384 | 4,187 | 5,125 | 22.4 | 16.9 |
| Exports | 261 | 281 | 373 | 32.9 | 42.7 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb. 22, 2010.
NOTE: Numbers may 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, other and unknown modes of transportation. For additional detail refer to the Data Fields Section of the TransBorder web page: http://www.bts.gov/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.
Table 3. December 2009 Surface Trade with Canada and MexicoCompared with December of Prior Years
| Compared to December in... | Percent Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Imports | Exports | Total Surface Trade | |
| 2008 | 10.8 | 10.1 | 10.5 |
| 2007 | -7.2 | 0.1 | -4.0 |
| 2006 | -5.5 | 5.2 | -1.0 |
| 2005 | -7.2 | 7.6 | -1.1 |
| 2004 | 8.0 | 18.0 | 12.3 |
| 2003 | 23.5 | 35.7 | 28.7 |
| 2002 | 35.8 | 53.7 | 43.3 |
| 2001 | 47.0 | 60.7 | 52.9 |
| 2000 | 25.0 | 38.1 | 30.6 |
| 1999 | 37.0 | 36.2 | 36.6 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb. 22, 2010.
Table 4. U.S. Surface Trade with Canada by Mode of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | December 2008 | November 2009 | December 2009 | Percent Change Nov. 2009-Dec. 2009 | Percent Change December 2008-2009 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 17,821 | 18,168 | 18,926 | 4.2 | 6.2 |
| Exports | 15,072 | 16,880 | 16,521 | -2.1 | 9.6 | |
| Total | 32,893 | 35,048 | 35,447 | 1.1 | 7.8 | |
| Truck | Imports | 9,047 | 9,299 | 8,836 | -5.0 | -2.3 |
| Exports | 11,488 | 13,026 | 12,776 | -1.9 | 11.2 | |
| Rail | Imports | 3,484 | 3,923 | 4,121 | 5.0 | 18.3 |
| Exports | 1,679 | 1,899 | 1,825 | -3.9 | 8.7 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 4,378 | 4,172 | 5,107 | 22.4 | 16.7 |
| Exports | 217 | 208 | 251 | 21.0 | 15.9 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb. 22, 2010.
NOTE: Numbers may 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, other and unknown modes of transportation. For additional detail refer to the Data Fields Section of the TransBorder web page: http://www.bts.gov/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.
Table 5. Top 10 States Trading with Canada by Surface Modes of Transportation
Ranked by December 2009 Surface Trade Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | State | December 2009 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michigan | 4,703 |
| 2 | Illinois | 3,517 |
| 3 | California | 2,206 |
| 4 | Ohio | 2,155 |
| 5 | New York | 2,002 |
| 6 | Texas | 1,721 |
| 7 | Washington | 1,695 |
| 8 | Pennsylvania | 1,283 |
| 9 | Indiana | 1,194 |
| 10 | Tennessee | 917 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb. 22, 2010.
Table 6. U.S. Surface Trade with Mexico by Mode of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | December 2008 | November 2009 | December 2009 | Percent Change Nov. 2009-Dec. 2009 | Percent Change December 2008-2009 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 11,086 | 13,525 | 13,104 | -3.1 | 18.2 |
| Exports | 8,931 | 10,349 | 9,914 | -4.2 | 11.0 | |
| Total | 20,017 | 23,875 | 23,018 | -3.6 | 15.0 | |
| Truck | Imports | 8,996 | 10,937 | 10,387 | -5.0 | 15.5 |
| Exports | 7,088 | 8,199 | 7,824 | -4.6 | 10.4 | |
| Rail | Imports | 1,779 | 2,203 | 2,330 | 5.8 | 31.0 |
| Exports | 1,332 | 1,580 | 1,491 | -5.6 | 12.0 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 6 | 15 | 18 | 21.6 | 197.9 |
| Exports | 45 | 73 | 122 | 66.5 | 172.7 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb.22, 2010.
NOTE: Numbers may 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, other and unknown modes of transportation. For additional detail refer to the Data Fields Section of the TransBorder web page: http://www.bts.gov/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html
Table 7. Top 10 States Trading with Mexico by Surface Modes of Transportation
Ranked by December 2009 Surface Trade Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | State | December 2009 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 7,892 |
| 2 | California | 3,648 |
| 3 | Michigan | 2,709 |
| 4 | Arizona | 800 |
| 5 | Illinois | 673 |
| 6 | Ohio | 546 |
| 7 | Tennessee | 459 |
| 8 | North Carolina | 397 |
| 9 | Indiana | 391 |
| 10 | Wisconsin | 330 |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on TransBorder Freight Data, available at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/, as of Feb.22, 2010.