OTTAWA, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Canada's merchandise trade balance deficit dropped in June, Statistics Canada reported Tuesday from Ottawa.
From May to June merchandise imports exports rose 1.4 percent, outpacing a 0.6 percent rise in imports.
The combined figures added up to a Canadian trade deficit of $469 million June, down from $781 million in May.
StatsCan said exports rose to $39.6 billion with strong gains in un-wrought precious metals and precious metal alloys. Exports of vehicle and aircraft also rose.
Prices of exports fell 0.6 percent in the month.
Imports rose to $40 billion. Setting the pace, increased imports of crude oil, bitumen and aircraft was "partly offset by lower imports of lubricants and other petroleum refinery products," StatsCan said.
Prices for imports rose 1.1 percent while volumes fell 0.5 percent, StatsCan said.
Excluding goods from the United States, imports rose 3.3 percent to $14.5 billion. Exports, excepting goods going to the United States rose 1.4 percent to $10.2 billion.
Add that up and Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States rose from $3.9 billion in May to $4.3 billion in June, StatsCan said.
It follows that trades with the United States drove the overall decline in the trade gap. Exports to the United States rose 1.5 percent to $29.4 billion. Imports from the United States fell 0.8 percent to $25.6 billion.
