BTS says surface trade with NAFTA partners is up 2.6 percent for August 2012

The United States Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) recently said that trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners Canada and Mexico was up 2.6 percent in August 2012 compared to August 2011 at $82.5 billion.

Surface transportation, according to the BTS, is comprised mainly of freight movements by truck, trail, and pipeline, mail and Foreign Trade Zones, and nearly 90 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moves by land. According to the BTS 87.2 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moved on land in April, with 8.9 percent moving by vessel, and 3.9 percent by air.

BTS said that the value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in August was $60.5 million, when adjusted for inflation and exchange rates in 2004 dollars, was up 5.2 percent from August 2011. It added that the value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in August rose 76.5 percent compared to August 2002, with imports up 63.2 percent and exports up 94.2 percent, respectively, during that period.

BTS noted that the value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico saw a 9 percent gain from July to August.

U.S.-Canada surface transportation trade in August at $47.0 billion was down 1.0 percent annually, due to lower imports from Canada. Michigan paced all states in surface trade with Canada in August at $6.8 billion for a 5.8 percent annual gain.

The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Mexico was up 7.8 percent year over year in August at $35.5 billion. Texas led all states in surface trade with Mexico in August at $13.1 billion, up 10.2 percent annually.