Canada Trade Balance 2022 and Composition in 21st Century

Canada's international trade increased from $483B in 2001 to $1,165B in 2022. In 2022, the share of the Americas, Asia, and Europe in Canada's trade was 69%, 19%, and 11%, respectively.

Canada's trade is mostly dependent on the United States, with a share of 63% of total trade, 77% of exports, and 49% of imports in 2022. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which has been in place since 1994, was replaced by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on July 1, 2020. These agreements have eased and facilitated trade among Canada, the U.S., and Mexico.

China is Canada's second-largest trade partner, accounting for a share of 8.5%, and Mexico is the third partner with a share of 3.3% in 2022.

Canada's exports rely mostly on energy, energy-intensive, and resource-based products, including fuels, minerals, chemicals, metals, agriculture, wood, and their products. These products have been responsible for Canada's export growth over the last two decades. In 2022, Canada exported $180B worth of mineral fuels and products, accounting for 30% of its total exports, of which more than 90% were exported to the U.S.

In 2022, more than half of Canada's imports consisted of mechanical and electrical machinery, transportation equipment, and consumer goods. Mechanical and electrical machinery and transportation equipment, accounted for 42% of Canada’s imports in 2022.

Canada has a trade surplus for fuels, minerals, wood, agriculture, and food and their products, but has a trade deficit for mechanical and electrical machinery, chemicals and plastics, transport equipment, textiles, clothing, and footwear.

Canada's trade with the United States creates a significant trade surplus for economy of Canada, amounting to $181B in 2022. Meanwhile, Canada faced a trade deficit of $152B with the rest of the world. Crude oil and natural gas accounted for around 70% of Canada's trade surplus with the U.S.