U.S. Trade Deficit Expands While Canada Runs Significant Surplus
- The U.S. monthly international trade deficit increased in June 2021 to $75.7 billion from $71 billion in May as imports increased more than exports. The goods deficit rose $4 billion in June to $93.2 billion while the services surplus decreased $0.7 billion to $17.4 billion. Year-to-date, the goods and services deficit was up 46.4 percent from the same period in 2020. Exports increased $150.9 billion (14.3 percent) while imports increased $286.7 billion (21.3 percent). Read the full report here.
- Meanwhile, Canada posted a trade surplus totaling C$3.23 billion in June, a figure that was well above analysts’ expectations and the reading’s highest level since September 2008. Higher shipments of automobiles (up 14.9 percent) and oil (up 25.7 percent) led to an overall 8.7 percent increase in exports. It was the largest increase in exports since January 2020. Shipments from the country are now at record levels. Imports were down one percent for the month. Read the full report here.
- New orders for manufactured goods in the United States rose 1.5 percent in June while shipments increased 1.6 percent. The value of unfilled orders rose one percent while the unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 6.94, down from 6.96 in May. Inventories also increased 1.0 percent and the inventories-to-shipments ratio was 1.48, down from 1.49 in May. Read the full report here.
- The Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index for the United States fell to 59.5 percent in July from 60.6 percent in June. It was the 14th month in a row that the index was in expansionary territory. The new orders, inventories, and production indices declined while the employment index was three percentage points higher than it was in June. Read the full report here. The IHS Markit PMI rose to 63.4 percent in July from 62.1 percent in June, meanwhile, as output and new orders increased. Read that full report here.
- The IHS Markit Canada Manufacturing PMI fell to a seasonally adjusted 56.2 in July from 56.5 in June. It was the lowest reading since February, but still well above the 50 threshold which shows growth in the sector. Read the full report here.
- According to Statistics Canada, the Canadian economy added 94,000 jobs last month and the nation’s unemployment rate fell from 7.8 percent in June to 7.5 percent in July. Total employment is still 246,000 shy of where it was in February 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in the country. The number of total hours worked also increased, rising 1.3 percent to a level that is still 2.7 percent below its pre-pandemic height. Read the full report here.
- The U.S. economy added 943,000 jobs in July and the unemployment rate declined by 0.5 percentage point to 5.4 percent. Manufacturers added 27,000 jobs last month. The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) decreased by 560,000 in July to 3.4 million, but still is 2.3 million higher than in February 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Read the full report here.
- According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 385,000 individuals filed for federal unemployment benefits for the first time during the week that ended July 31, 2021. That number was down 14,000 from the previous week’s level. The four-week moving average was 394,000, a decrease of 250 from the previous week’s level. Read the full report here.
- In other economic news: U.S. construction spending increased 0.1 percent between May 2021 and June 2021 and 8.2 percent between June 2020 and June 2021; U.S. auto sales continued to increase; and economic activity in the services sector grew for the 14th month in a row in July.