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April 2011 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 12.1 Percent from April 2010
April 2011 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 12.1 Percent from April 2010
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North American Surface Trade, May 2009 - April 2011
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Wednesday, June 29, 2011 - Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners Canada and Mexico was 12.1 percent higher in April 2011 than in April 2010, reaching $73.8 billion (Table 1), according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in April 2011 rose 48.3 percent in two years from April 2009 but remained 0.7 percent below the early recession level of April 2008 (Table 3). See Transborder Press Releases for historic data. Values in this press release are not adjusted for inflation.
Surface transportation includes freight movements by truck, rail, pipeline, mail, Foreign Trade Zones and other. In April, 84.7 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moved on land, 11.1 percent moved by vessel, and 4.2 percent moved by air.
The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in April was up 19.5 percent compared to April 2006, and up 57.6 percent compared to April 2001, a period of 10 years. Imports in April were up 48.3 percent compared to April 2001, while exports were up 70.0 percent (Table 3).
Freight value in April 2011 fell 8.7 percent from the previous month (Table 2). Month-to-month changes can be affected by seasonal variations and other factors.
U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Canada and Mexico
U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico surface transportation trade both increased when compared to April 2010 with U.S.-Canada totaling $44.6 billion, an 11.8 percent increase, and U.S.-Mexico totaling $29.1 billion, a 12.4 percent increase. For trade numbers by mode, see Table 4 for Canada and Table 6 for Mexico.
In April trade by state, Michigan continued to lead all states in surface trade with Canada at $5.8 billion, up 6.6 percent from April 2010 (Table 5). Texas continued to lead all states in surface trade with Mexico at $10.1 billion, up 10.8 percent from April 2010 (Table 7).
Commodity Trade
The top three commodities imported from Canada and Mexico have remained the same over the last year. The top three commodities imported from Canada by all land modes in April were mineral fuels, oils, and waxes; vehicles; and computer-related machinery and parts, totaling $12 billion (Table 8). The top three commodities imported from Mexico by all land modes in April were vehicles, computer-related machinery, and electrical machinery and parts, totaling $10.5 billion (Table 10).
The largest increase in U.S.-Canada commodity in the last year was mineral fuels, oils, and waxes, up 17.0 percent, and the largest increase in U.S.-Mexico trade was computer-related machinery and parts, up 18.2 percent (Tables 8 and 10).
Electrical machinery, vehicles, and computer-related machinery and parts are exported from the United States to be assembled in Canada and Mexico, and then imported back to the U.S. as finished goods.
The top three commodities exported to Canada and Mexico by all land modes are vehicles, computer-related machinery, and electrical machinery and parts, totaling $9.4 billion for Canada and $5.8 billion for Mexico. These top three commodities exported to Canada and Mexico remained the same over the last year. The commodities that increased the most in U.S.-Canada trade were computer-related machinery, up 16.6 percent, and in U.S.-Mexico trade were electrical machinery and parts, up 21.4 percent (Table 9 and Table 11).
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. April TransBorder numbers include data received by BTS as of June 9.
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/programs/international/transborder/. BTS will release May TransBorder numbers on Aug. 2.
Table 1. Value of Monthly U.S. Surface Transportation Trade with Canada and Mexico
(millions of dollars)
| Month | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | Percent Change 2009-2010 | Percent Change 2010-2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47,459 | 56,697 | 67,734 | 19.5 | 19.5 |
| February | 47,938 | 59,492 | 66,534 | 24.1 | 11.8 |
| March | 51,055 | 69,943 | 80,822 | 37.0 | 15.6 |
| April | 49,729 | 65,831 | 73,767 | 32.4 | 12.1 |
| May | 47,881 | 66,805 | 39.5 | ||
| June | 50,753 | 69,859 | 37.6 | ||
| July | 51,545 | 61,260 | 18.8 | ||
| August | 54,254 | 67,964 | 25.3 | ||
| September | 57,294 | 68,324 | 19.3 | ||
| October | 61,400 | 70,565 | 14.9 | ||
| November | 58,922 | 68,060 | 15.5 | ||
| December | 58,465 | 66,530 | 13.8 | ||
| Year-to-date | 196,182 | 251,962 | 288,857 | 28.4 | 14.6 |
| Annual | 636,695 | 791,329 | 24.3 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 2. U.S. Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico by Mode of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | April 2010 | March 2011 | April 2011 | Percent Change March - April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010 - 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 35,785 | 43,409 | 39,543 | -8.9 | 10.5 |
| Exports | 30,045 | 37,413 | 34,224 | -8.5 | 13.9 | |
| Total | 65,831 | 80,822 | 73,767 | -8.7 | 12.1 | |
| Truck | Imports | 22,776 | 27,489 | 24,626 | -10.4 | 8.1 |
| Exports | 23,404 | 29,036 | 26,329 | -9.3 | 12.5 | |
| Rail | Imports | 7,222 | 8,358 | 8,199 | -1.9 | 13.5 |
| Exports | 4,020 | 4,817 | 4,528 | -6.0 | 12.6 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 4,922 | 5,954 | 5,510 | -7.5 | 11.9 |
| Exports | 380 | 729 | 981 | 34.5 | 158.2 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Notes: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change 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/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.
Table 3. April 2011 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Compared with November of Prior Years
| Compared to April in | Percent Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Imports | Exports | Total Surface Trade | |
| 2010 | 10.5 | 13.9 | 12.1 |
| 2009 | 48.0 | 48.7 | 48.3 |
| 2008 | -6.4 | 6.6 | -0.7 |
| 2007 | 7.1 | 21.8 | 13.5 |
| 2006 | 12.6 | 28.6 | 19.5 |
| 2005 | 19.1 | 36.4 | 26.5 |
| 2004 | 30.1 | 50.1 | 38.7 |
| 2003 | 49.0 | 68.5 | 57.5 |
| 2002 | 47.8 | 70.8 | 57.7 |
| 2001 | 48.3 | 70.0 | 57.6 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 4. U.S. Merchandise Trade with Canada by Surface Modes of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | April 2010 | March 2011 | April 2011 | Percent Change March - April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010 - 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 20,908 | 25,379 | 23,120 | -8.9 | 10.6 |
| Exports | 19,018 | 23,343 | 21,519 | -7.8 | 13.1 | |
| Total | 39,926 | 48,722 | 44,639 | -8.4 | 11.8 | |
| Truck | Imports | 10,497 | 12,493 | 11,055 | -11.5 | 5.3 |
| Exports | 14,654 | 18,077 | 16,465 | -8.9 | 12.4 | |
| Rail | Imports | 4,892 | 5,722 | 5,678 | -0.8 | 16.1 |
| Exports | 2,319 | 2,692 | 2,514 | -6.6 | 8.4 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 4,906 | 5,936 | 5,483 | -7.6 | 11.8 |
| Exports | 293 | 400 | 692 | 72.9 | 136.0 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change 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/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.
Table 5. Top 10 States Trading with Canada by Surface Modes of Transportation
Ranked by April 2011 Surface Trade Value
(millions of dollars)
| State | April 2011 | April 2010 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Rank | Value | Rank | ||
| Michigan | 5,824 | 1 | 5,461 | 1 | 6.6 |
| Illinois | 4,507 | 2 | 3,535 | 2 | 27.5 |
| Ohio | 2,768 | 3 | 2,573 | 3 | 7.6 |
| Texas | 2,636 | 4 | 2,097 | 6 | 25.7 |
| New York | 2,596 | 5 | 2,449 | 5 | 6.0 |
| California | 2,450 | 6 | 2,524 | 4 | -2.9 |
| Washington | 1,788 | 7 | 1,577 | 7 | 13.4 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,662 | 8 | 1,458 | 8 | 14.0 |
| Indiana | 1,572 | 9 | 1,413 | 9 | 11.3 |
| Minnesota | 1,261 | 10 | 851 | 12 | 48.2 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 6. U.S. Merchandise Trade with Mexico by Surface Modes of Transportation
(millions of dollars)
| Mode | April 2010 | March 2011 | April 2011 | Percent Change March - April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010 - 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Surface Modes | Imports | 14,878 | 18,030 | 16,423 | -8.9 | 10.4 |
| Exports | 11,027 | 14,070 | 12,705 | -9.7 | 15.2 | |
| Total | 25,905 | 32,099 | 29,128 | -9.3 | 12.4 | |
| Truck | Imports | 12,279 | 14,996 | 13,572 | -9.5 | 10.5 |
| Exports | 8,750 | 10,959 | 9,864 | -10.0 | 12.7 | |
| Rail | Imports | 2,330 | 2,636 | 2,521 | -4.4 | 8.2 |
| Exports | 1,700 | 2,125 | 2,014 | -5.2 | 18.4 | |
| Pipeline | Imports | 16 | 18 | 26 | 47.3 | 65.5 |
| Exports | 87 | 329 | 289 | -12.1 | 233.2 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change 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/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html
Table 7. Top 10 States Trading with Mexico by Surface Modes of Transportation
Ranked by April 2011 Surface Trade Value
(millions of dollars)
| State | April 2011 | April 2010 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Rank | Value | Rank | ||
| Texas | 10,132 | 1 | 9,144 | 1 | 10.8 |
| California | 4,202 | 2 | 3,866 | 2 | 8.7 |
| Michigan | 3,269 | 3 | 2,841 | 3 | 15.1 |
| Illinois | 1,062 | 4 | 824 | 5 | 28.8 |
| Arizona | 1,044 | 5 | 954 | 4 | 9.5 |
| Ohio | 804 | 6 | 690 | 6 | 16.4 |
| Indiana | 540 | 7 | 455 | 8 | 18.7 |
| Tennessee | 504 | 8 | 534 | 7 | -5.6 |
| Georgia | 471 | 9 | 381 | 12 | 23.7 |
| North Carolina | 454 | 10 | 402 | 9 | 13.1 |
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 8. Top 3 Commodities by Imports Value for U.S. - Canada Trade by All Land Modes
Ranked by April 2011 Imports Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | Commodity Code | Commodity Description | April 2010 | April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imports Value | Percent of Total | Imports Value | Percent of Total | ||||
| 1 | 27 | Mineral Fuels; Oils and Waxes | 5,466 | 26.1 | 6,395 | 27.7 | 17.0 |
| 2 | 87 | Vehicles Other than Railway | 3,922 | 18.8 | 4,169 | 18.0 | 6.3 |
| 3 | 84 | Computer-Related Machinery and Parts | 1,312 | 6.3 | 1,438 | 6.2 | 9.6 |
| Total, top 3 commodities | 10,701 | 51.2 | 12,003 | 51.9 | 12.2 | ||
| Total, all commodities | 20,908 | 100.0 | 23,120 | 100.0 | 10.6 | ||
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 9. Top 3 Commodities by Exports Value for U.S. - Canada Trade by All Land Modes
Ranked by April 2011 Exports Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | Commodity Code | Commodity Description | April 2010 | April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exports Value | Percent of Total | Exports Value | Percent of Total | ||||
| 1 | 87 | Vehicles Other than Railway | 3,951 | 20.8 | 4,163 | 19.3 | 5.37 |
| 2 | 84 | Computer-Related Machinery and Parts | 3,027 | 15.9 | 3,530 | 16.4 | 16.62 |
| 3 | 85 | Electrical Machinery; Equipment and Parts | 1,502 | 7.9 | 1,716 | 8.0 | 14.29 |
| Total, top 3 commodities | 8,479 | 44.6 | 9,409 | 43.7 | 11.0 | ||
| Total, all commodities | 19,018 | 100.0 | 21,519 | 100.0 | 13.2 | ||
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 10. Top 3 Commodities by Imports Value for U.S. - Mexico Trade by All Land Modes
Ranked by April 2011 Imports Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | Commodity Code | Commodity Description | April 2010 | April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imports Value | Percent of Total | Imports Value | Percent of Total | ||||
| 1 | 85 | Electrical Machinery; Equipment and Parts | 4,003 | 26.9 | 4,113 | 25.0 | 2.8 |
| 2 | 87 | Vehicles Other than Railway | 3,120 | 21.0 | 3,354 | 20.4 | 7.5 |
| 3 | 84 | Computer-Related Machinery and Parts | 2,584 | 17.4 | 3,055 | 18.6 | 18.2 |
| Total, top 3 commodities | 9,706 | 65.2 | 10,522 | 64.1 | 8.4 | ||
| Total, all commodities | 14,878 | 100.0 | 16,423 | 100.0 | 10.4 | ||
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 11. Top 3 Commodities by Exports Value for U.S. - Mexico Trade by All Land Modes
Ranked by April 2011 Exports Value
(millions of dollars)
| Rank | Commodity Code | Commodity Description | April 2010 | April 2011 | Percent Change April 2010-2011 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exports Value | Percent of Total | Exports Value | Percent of Total | ||||
| 1 | 85 | Electrical Machinery; Equipment and Parts | 2,288 | 20.7 | 2,343 | 18.4 | 2.4 |
| 2 | 84 | Computer-Related Machinery and Parts | 1,828 | 16.6 | 2,218 | 17.5 | 21.4 |
| 3 | 87 | Vehicles Other than Railway | 1,150 | 10.4 | 1,248 | 9.8 | 8.5 |
| Total, top 3 commodities | 5,266 | 47.8 | 5,809 | 45.7 | 10.3 | ||
| Total, all commodities | 11,027 | 100.0 | 12,705 | 100.0 | 15.2 | ||
Source: BTS TransBorder Freight Data, http://www.bts.gov/transborder/
Note: Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding. Percent change based on numbers prior to rounding.