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March 10, 2025PERSPECTIVES ON COUNTRY ATTRIBUTION IN CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL MERCHANDISE TRADE STATISTICS Statistics Canada provides import and export data for international merchandise trade by partner country to provide insight into the countries Canada trades with. For imports, it is important to distinguish between customs-basis data, and balance of payments-basis data, as each measure may result in different values of trade being attributed to a country. For exports, separating domestic exports and re-exports provides additional perspective. Statistics Canada recently released two new tables on Canada’s international merchandise trade statistics. Table 12-10-0178 provides data for customs-basis imports by country of origin/export, while 12-10-0179 provides data for customs-basis total exports, domestic exports, and re-exports. Both tables provide data on Canada’s top 27 principal trading partners, as well as products under the North American Product Classification System (NAPCS) 2022.
For imports, international standards recommend that the partner country in customs-basis data be attributed to the country of origin, that is, the country in which goods were grown, extracted, or manufactured. The country of export is the country from which the goods were directly shipped to Canada.
Imports on the balance of payments-basis are attributed to the country of export, in order to reflect when a change of ownership occurred and align with macroeconomic account statistics. This means that customs-basis data using country of origin, in accordance with international standards, will not be the same as balance of payments measures, Canada’s official measure for balance of trade.
When measuring exports, total exports are the sum of both domestic exports, where goods are grown, extracted, or manufactured in Canada, and re-exports, which are goods of foreign origin that were imported into Canada, then re-exported without significant alterations. The partner country in exports is attributed to the last known country of destination on both a customs-basis and a balance of payments-basis.
Canada’s trade balance
Canada’s official measure for the trade balance is calculated by subtracting balance of payments-basis imports from balance of payments-basis exports. Currently, balance of payments-basis data is only available for either trading partner or product, but not both. This data is available through customs-basis data; however care must be taken to use country of export attribution when examining Canada’s imports to more closely align with the balance of payments framework.
As an example, on a balance of payments-basis, Canada’s imports from the United States were $487.9 billion in 2024, vs $375.0 billion on a country-of-origin attributed customs-basis. Using a country-of-export customs-basis Canada’s imports were $471.3 billion, which while it is more closely aligned with the balance of payments-basis, it is important to note that differences remain primarily due to valuation, coverage and timing differences between the measures. Canada’s net-exports on a balance of payments basis were $102.3 billion, while on a customs-basis and country-of-origin attribution, they were $221.2 billion.
Revealing trade flows
Breaking down Canada's imports by exporter and country of origin can provide insight into how goods get to Canada. In 2024, Canada imported $47.3 billion in Mexican-origin goods. Of this, $19.4 billion was imported directly from the United States, which included electronic and electrical parts and equipment ($6.2 billion) and motor vehicles and parts ($3.8 billion). These goods cleared customs in the United States, either remained unchanged or underwent minimal processing, and then were re-exported to Canada.
Source: Perspectives on country attribution in Canadian international merchandise trade statistics
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