Despite weak numbers at the northern border, a growth streak for cross-border freight that began in November 2020 continues, thanks to a strong month at the southern border.
According to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, truck freight valued at nearly $91 billion was hauled across the borders in May. That was an increase of less than 1% from April and represented a rise of 2% compared to May 2023.
May’s year-to-year increase was relatively small compared to increases over the past three-and-a-half years. Trucking freight across North America has been trending upward since November 2020, with only three decreases since then: a 2% decrease in February 2021, a 1% decrease in December 2023 and a 4.5% decrease in March.
Cross-border freight hauled by trucks across the U.S. northern border actually dropped by 4% compared to May 2023. But at the southern border, the value of freight jumped by 7%, resulting in a net increase for North American freight.
The top three truck commodities at the northern border were computers/parts ($6.3 billion, down 0.9%), vehicles ($5.4 billion, down 12%) and electrical machinery ($2.5 billion, down 2%). At the Mexican border, top commodities included computers/parts ($11.8 billion, up 20%), electrical machinery ($11.7 billion, up 8%) and vehicles ($7.6 billion, up 1%).
By weight, cross-border freight hauled by trucks was down by 1% compared to the previous year and decreased by 1% compared to April. Year-to-year, North American truck freight by weight has increased only six times since July 2022, with three of those increases in 2024.
Top Canadian commodities for trucking by weight included wood (down 3%), vehicles (up 2%) and iron/steel (down 2%). In Mexico, the top three commodities were vehicles (down 7%), edible vegetables/roots (down 6%) and edible fruits/nuts (down 4%).
Accounting for all modes of transportation, the total value of cross-border freight reached nearly $139 billion in May. That was an increase of 2% compared to the previous year and a gain of 1% compared to the previous month.
Overall cross-border freight value has been trending downward since March 2023. Last year, cross-border freight dropped in eight months, including a seven-month streak that started in March. However, the value of North American freight has now increased five times since October.
Canadian freight is down 2% compared to the previous year, whereas Mexican freight rose by 6%.
By weight, freight crossing the borders went down by less than 1% compared to May 2023 but increased by 2% compared to April.
For a second consecutive month, all modes of freight transportation but one experienced a rise in freight by value compared to the previous year: rail up 4%, vessel up 4% and pipeline up 3.5%. Airfreight went down by 8%. LL
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