NAFTA trade totals $91.1b in September

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics said that in September, 64.7 percent of freight between the United States and its partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement was transported by truck.    Total value of cross-border trade between the United States and its partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which include Canada and Mexico, stood at $91.1 billion in September, a 2.3 percent decline from September 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).
   “The total value of cross-border freight has declined from the same month of the previous year in 20 of the past 21 months beginning in January 2015 with only an increase of 0.7 percent in August 2016,” the BTS said.
   The United States imported $48.8 billion from Canada and Mexico in September, while exports to the two countries totaled $42.4 billion.
   During the month, trucks carried 64.7 percent of U.S.-NAFTA cargo. However, the value of commodities moving by truck between the U.S. and its NAFTA partners fell 3.8 percent year-over-year in September, while pipeline transport fell 5.2 percent and vessel transport sank 6.8 percent.
   On the flip side, the value of commodities moving by rail and air in September rose 8 percent and 3.4 percent year-over-year, respectively.