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(Reuters) – Crude oil prices pushed up by the Iran war helped propel Canada’s goods trade surplus in April up by 55% to a 15-month high of C$2.72 billion ($1.95 billion), Statistics Canada said on Tuesday.
Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a surplus of C$2.57 billion. Statscan revised March’s surplus down to C$1.75 billion from an initial C$1.78 billion.
Total exports increased 1.6% in April to reach a record high of C$75.16 billion. Exports of energy products rose 9.7% in April, following an increase of 23.4% in March.
“Both monthly increases were driven by higher prices, which continued to rise in April amid the uncertainty caused by the conflict in Iran,” Statscan said in a commentary. Crude oil exports, which rose by 7.0%, contributed the most to the gain.
The overall increase in total exports was offset by a 17.5% decrease in exports of metal and non-metallic mineral products, which had boomed in February and March. Lower shipments of gold to Britain were largely responsible for the fall.
Imports edged up 0.3% to hit a record C$72.44 billion, largely due to a 16.9% increase in imports of basic and industrial chemical, plastic and rubber products.
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Although Ottawa is trying to diversify exports away from the United States amid a trade war between the two countries, the market still dominates Canadian trade.
Exports to the United States grew by 4.8% to C$51.98 billion, representing 69.2% of all trade, the largest share since September 2025.
Imports grew 1.6% to $42.50 billion. As a result, the Canadian surplus with the United States rose to C$9.48 billion, the largest since February 2025.
After reaching a record high in March, exports to countries other than the United States fell 4.8% in April. This was partially offset by higher exports to China, which reached a record $3.84 billion.
($1=$1.3931 Canadian)
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