Canadian international merchandise trade, April 2026

Released: 2026-06-09

In April, Canada's merchandise exports increased 1.6%, while imports edged up 0.3%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade surplus with the world widened from $1.8 billion in March to $2.7 billion in April. This was the second consecutive monthly trade surplus, and the largest since January 2025.

Consult the "International trade monthly interactive dashboard" to explore the most recent results of Canada's international trade in an interactive format.

Chart 1 
Merchandise exports and imports

Exports of crude oil continue to rise on higher prices

Following a surge of 10.1% in March, total exports increased 1.6% in April to reach a record high of $75.2 billion. Since the 4.4% decline observed in January, total exports have increased by 19.2%. In April, gains were observed in 9 of the 11 product sections. Energy products (+9.7%), as well as metal and non-metallic mineral products (-17.5%), posted large offsetting movements in April. Excluding these two product sections, exports increased 5.1%. In real (or volume) terms, total exports were up 3.0%, marking a third consecutive monthly increase.

Chart 2 
Contribution to the monthly change in exports, by product, April 2026

Exports of energy products rose 9.7% in April. This followed an increase of 23.4% in March. Both monthly increases were driven by higher prices, which continued to rise in April amid the uncertainty caused by the conflict in Iran. Exports of crude oil (+7.0%) contributed the most to the gain in April, mainly driven by rising prices. Exports of crude oil are estimated for the current reference month, and these estimates are subject to larger revisions during times of high price volatility. Exports of refined petroleum energy products (+37.9%) also increased in April, largely on higher exports of motor gasoline and aviation fuel.

Chart 3 
Exports of crude oil and bitumen

Exports of farm, fishing and intermediate food products increased 8.9% in April, reaching their highest level since January 2025. In April, exports of wheat (+31.9%) increased the most, in part because of higher shipments destined to China. Exports of intermediate food products (+18.3%) also contributed to the movement in April, mainly because of higher exports of crude canola oil to the United States.

Exports of motor vehicles and parts rose 5.9% in April. Exports of passenger cars and light trucks (+10.0%) contributed the most to the monthly increase, marking a third consecutive gain following a large decline in January. The recent rise in exports of passenger cars and light trucks was associated with increased auto production in Canada.

Several other product sections posted notable gains in April. These product sections included industrial machinery, equipment and parts (+9.6%), aircraft and other transportation equipment and parts (+13.8%), and basic and industrial chemical, plastic and rubber products (+8.3%).

The overall increase in total exports was largely offset by a 17.5% decrease in exports of metal and non-metallic mineral products. Following sharp increases in February and March, exports of unwrought gold, silver, and platinum group metals, and their alloys—a category largely composed of unwrought gold—contributed the most to the monthly change in April. These exports decreased by 25.5% in the month, driven by lower shipments of gold to the United Kingdom.

Offsetting movements observed in imports

Total imports edged up 0.3% in April to reach a record of $72.4 billion. Overall, gains were observed in 6 of the 11 product sections. In real (or volume) terms, total imports were up 0.4%.

Chart 4 
Contribution to the monthly change in imports, by product, April 2026

Imports of basic and industrial chemical, plastic and rubber products rose 16.9% and contributed the most to the gain in April. Imports of lubricants and other petroleum refinery products increased 49.0%, mainly because of higher imports of crude oil diluents from the United States. Higher prices also contributed to the increase in imports of this product group in April. Following a 13.7% decrease in March, imports of basic chemicals (+13.8%) were also up in April.

Imports of electronic and electrical equipment and parts increased 4.2% in April. Imports of computers and computer peripherals (+13.2%) rose the most to reach a record high in April, mainly because of higher imports of processing units from Ireland to be used in data centres. Imports of computers and computer peripherals were up 24.7% in the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025.

The overall increase in total imports in April was partly offset by a 12.9% decrease in imports of metal and non-metallic mineral products. The decline was mainly the result of a 27.5% decrease in imports of unwrought gold, silver, and platinum group metals, and their alloys. In April, a drop in gold prices as well as lower purchases of gold from non-residents contributed to the decrease. Despite the monthly decline, these imports more than doubled in the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025. Imports of waste and scrap of metal (-31.5%) also contributed to the decrease in the product section in April. Lower imports of gold waste and scrap from the United States were behind the monthly movement.

Chart 5 
Imports and exports of unwrought gold, silver, and platinum group metals, and their alloys

Exports to the United States increase for a third consecutive month

Exports to the United States rose 4.8% in April, increasing for a third consecutive month. Exports of crude oil and passenger cars and light trucks drove the monthly increase. Meanwhile, imports from the United States were up 1.6%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade surplus with the United States widened from $7.8 billion in March to $9.5 billion in April, the largest surplus since February 2025.

Chart 6 
Merchandise trade with the United States

Exports to countries other than the United States decrease

After reaching a record high in March, exports to countries other than the United States fell 4.8% in April. Lower exports of unwrought gold to the United Kingdom contributed the most to the decline. This was partially offset by higher exports to China (various products), which reached a record $3.8 billion in April.

Meanwhile, imports from countries other than the United States decreased 1.5% in April. Lower imports from China (machinery) and Germany (various products) were partially offset by higher imports from Mexico (unwrought gold and gold doré). Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States widened from $6.0 billion in March to $6.8 billion in April.

Chart 7 
Merchandise trade with countries other than the United States

Chart 8 
Exports to China

Chart 9 
International merchandise trade balance

Revisions to March merchandise export and import data

Imports in March, originally reported at $71.0 billion in the previous release, were revised to $72.2 billion in the current reference month's release, in part because of higher receipts of import documentation after Statistics Canada's collection deadlines. Exports in March, originally reported at $72.8 billion in the previous release, were revised to $74.0 billion in the current reference month's release, mainly because estimates for exports of energy products were replaced with actual data.

Monthly trade in services

In April, monthly service exports decreased 0.9% to $20.6 billion. Meanwhile, imports of services were up 1.1% to $20.5 billion.

When international trade in goods and services are combined, exports increased 1.0% to $95.8 billion in April, while imports were up 0.5% to $92.9 billion. Canada's total trade surplus with the world went from $2.3 billion in March to $2.8 billion in April.

Products

The International trade statistics portal is now available on the Statistics Canada website.

The product "International trade monthly interactive dashboard" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is now available. This interactive dashboard is a comprehensive analytical tool that presents monthly changes in Canada's international merchandise trade data on a balance-of-payments basis, fully supporting the information presented every month in the Daily release.

The product "The International Trade Explorer" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is now available online.

The updated "Canada and the World Statistics Hub" (Catalogue number13-609-X) is available online. This product illustrates the nature and extent of Canada's economic and financial relationship with the world using interactive charts and tables. It provides easy access to information on trade, investment, employment and travel between Canada and a number of countries, including the United States, Mexico, China, Japan, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain.

The product "Canada's international trade and investment country fact sheet" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is also available.

The online Canadian International Merchandise Trade Database is no longer available. It has been replaced by the Canadian International Merchandise Trade Web Application (Catalogue number71-607-X), a modern tool that provides trade data users with a number of enhancements.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).