NAFTA trade suffers biggest fall since 9/11

NAFTA trade suffers biggest fall since 9/11    The value of trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement partners Canada and Mexico was 13.8 percent lower in November 2008 than in November 2007, dropping to $60.7 billion, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
   It's the biggest year-to-year decline in almost eight years, the agency said. BTS reported that the 13.8 percent decline was the second largest from the same month of the previous year since North American surface freight data collection began in April 1994, three months after NAFTA was implemented.
   The only bigger decline was the 14.6 percent drop from December 2000 to December 2001 in the post-9/11 period.
   About 88 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moves on land. The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico in November was up 25.2 percent compared to November 2003, and up 53.6 percent compared to November 1998. Imports in November were up 52.6 percent compared to November 1998, while exports were up 54.9 percent.