In August, Canada's merchandise exports rose 2.5%, while imports were down 2.0%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade surplus with the world widened from $787 million in July to $4.2 billion in August. This was the sixth consecutive monthly trade surplus, according to a report released Tuesday by Statistics Canada.
"A large proportion of import and export transactions are completed in US dollars and must be converted to Canadian dollars to compile monthly trade statistics. All other things being equal, when the Canadian dollar appreciates against the US dollar, monthly trade values expressed in Canadian dollars are lower," said the federal agency.
"In August, the average value of the Canadian dollar increased 1.1 US cents compared with the average value in July. This was the strongest monthly increase since December 2025. When expressed in US dollars, Canadian exports rose 4.0% in August 2026, while imports were down 0.6%."
After falling 2.6% in July, total exports increased 2.5% in August. Overall, gains were observed in 8 of the 11 product sections. Excluding energy products, exports were up 1.8%. In real (or volume) terms, total exports rose 2.5%, said Statistics Canada.
Hike in exports of energy products
"Exports of energy products were up 4.7% in August, the first increase since April. Exports of refined petroleum energy products posted the largest monthly gain (+17.4%), driven by a rise in diesel exports to Peru, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Netherlands. Year over year, prices for exports of refined petroleum energy products were up more than 50%. Crude oil exports (+2.1%) also rose in August 2026, due to higher prices. Exports of nuclear fuel and other energy products increased 58.4%, driven by higher shipments to Germany and the United Kingdom," it said.
"Exports of consumer goods increased 6.6% in August. Higher exports of miscellaneous goods and supplies (+43.3%) contributed the most to the growth, in part because of an increase in shipments of gold and silver coins to the United States. Exports of other products, including some that were targeted by new import tariffs in the United States, also contributed to the increase in exports of miscellaneous goods and supplies in August."
The report said total imports decreased 2.0% in August, the first decline since January. Despite the decrease, gains were observed in 6 of the 11 product sections. Imports of motor vehicles and parts posted the largest decline in August. Excluding this product section, imports fell 0.5%. In real (or volume) terms, total imports were down 1.1%.
Exports to the United States rose 8.1% in August, while imports were down 2.5%. As a result, Canada's trade surplus with the United States widened from $6.1 billion in July to $11.2 billion in August. This is the largest positive monthly change ever observed in Canada's trade balance with the United States, added Statistics Canada.
US tariffs on Canadian products
"On July 22, the United States announced its intentions to impose new tariffs on a range of Canadian products and raise tariff rates on others. These took effect at the end of August. The announcement of tariffs may influence trade patterns and prompt importers to increase shipments before the tariffs take effect in order to avoid additional costs. New Canadian tariffs on select American goods were subsequently announced at the end of August," said Statistics Canada.
"After increasing 8.2% in July, exports to countries other than the United States fell 8.5% in August. The largest contributors to this decline were exports to the United Kingdom (unwrought gold), the Netherlands (energy products) and France (aircraft and crude oil). The share of Canadian exports destined to countries other than the United States stood at 30.2% in August, down from 33.9% in July.
"Imports from countries other than the United States decreased 1.4% in August. Lower imports from Saudi Arabia (crude oil), Japan (passenger cars and light trucks) and South Korea (passenger cars and light trucks) were partly offset by higher imports from Germany (aircraft and passenger cars) and China (various products)."