North American cross-border airfreight flat in April

Freight as valued in USD between the United States, Canada and Mexico bucked trade tensions to increase 1.8% year-over-year during April. However, that gain was realized primarily from oceangoing vessels, pipelines and trucking, while airfreight – making up the smallest overall modal share at $3.8 billion – was flat compared to April 2018. 

Despite the dissolution of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) last year, and the so-far-unimplemented replacement deal, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), still awaiting approval by the U.S. Congress, cross-border freight between North American countries strengthened year-over-year during April. Total freight between the United States, Canada and Mexico was valued at $104.5 billion during April 2019, up 1.8% from a year earlier, the U.S. Department of Transportation reported. 

See also: Can integrated trade survive in these protectionist times? 

According to the DOT, airfreight in value between the U.S. and Mexico, in both directions, was flat year over year at $1.4 billion. Meanwhile, airfreight between the U.S. and Canada increased by about 4.2% to $2.5 billion. 

Despite the slight increase in trade for the month, growth in trade between the U.S. and its North American neighbors has slowed drastically since 2018. Compared to April 2017, the value of cross-border freight between the countries increased 12.8% during April 2018. Whether the eventual implementation of a new trade deal – be that USMCA or another deal not yet proposed – will allow for a return to double-digit growth remains to be seen.