OTTAWA, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Canada's trade surplus widened sharply to 4.2 billion Canadian dollars (about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars) in August, Statistics Canada said Tuesday.
Marking Canada's sixth consecutive monthly positive trade balance, the surplus expanded significantly from a revised 787 million Canadian dollars (about 552 million U.S. dollars) recorded in July.
The jump was mainly driven by an 8.1 percent surge in exports to the United States, while imports fell 2.5 percent, Statistics Canada reported.
Canada's trade ties with China continued to grow. Canadian exports to China rose 30 percent year on year in the first half of 2026, while overall trade in goods between Canada and China totalled 66.6 billion Canadian dollars (about 46.7 billion U.S. dollars), up 3.6 percent, according to Statistics Canada. The outbound trade was dominated by energy and mineral commodities, with crude oil and liquefied propane seeing particularly strong growth.
Meanwhile, Canadian merchandise exports to France rose 53 percent in the first seven months of 2026 from the same period last year, said Global Affairs Canada, the country's foreign ministry.
The figures reflect a broader shift as Canada's export reliance on traditional markets has narrowed while exports to the rest of the world expanded, as Ottawa sought to diversify its trade partners. ■
