(John Morrissy — Financial Post)
Canada’s trade deficit with the world rose to $1.1-billion in June from $695-million in May as the country’s exports dropped 2.5% in the month, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday.
Economists polled by Bloomberg had called for the trade deficit to narrow to $300-million.
Declines in exports of industrial goods and materials accounted for two thirds of the decline in the value of overall exports, followed by energy products and automotive products, the federal agency said.
Imports also declined in June, by 1.2%, as a result of lower imports of energy products.
“Overall, this was a very disappointing report as it suggests that the once buoyant trade sector has lost a significant portion of the positive momentum that has contributed in the past few quarters to the strong performance of the Canadian economy,” Millan Mulraine, senior micro strategist at TD Securities said in a morning commentary. Read more: here.
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