Though the latest numbers from the U.S. Department of Transportation indicate a significant increase in surface transportation trade between the U.S. and Canada and Mexico from 2009 to 2010, the value of North American surface trade remains below 2007 and 2008 levels. From 2009 to 2010, trade among North American Free Trade Agreement partners rose 24.3 percent, the largest year-to-year increase since the agreement took effect in 1994. U.S.-Canada surface transportation trade totaled $471 billion in 2010, an increase of 22.1 percent compared to 2009, while U.S.-Mexico surface Continue Reading

Unlike the Bush Administration’s truck pilot project with Mexico which capped the number of approved carriers at 100, the new border program between the two countries will allow an unlimited number of truckers to register. However, they will have to comply with a number of rules. For starters, participants must be fluent in English, be subject to frequent drug tests and meet higher safety requirements, such as their trucks being equipped with Continue Reading

Cross-border trading between the U.S. and Canada could get a little smoother thanks to efforts between Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Barack Obama. The two intend to streamline the flow of goods at the border, that would both help the two countries as well as their customers. The American Trucking Associations (ATA) has lauded the move as a necessary and welcome move. ATA staff met with U.S. Customs and Border Continue Reading

Canada’s exports continued to drop, while imports rose, according to the latest numbers from Statistics Canada. For July, exports declined 0.7 percent, or from $33 billion in June to $32.8 billion in July, marking the fourth decrease in six months. Leading the decrease was industrial machinery such as aircraft, engines and parts. Other export drops included consumer products and forestry products, which fell after 10 straight months of growth. Exports to Continue Reading

For the 18th straight year, Memphis International Airport held its position as the world’s busiest for cargo. Before the recession dampened global demand, some had predicted that Hong Kong could overtake the Tennessee airport. FedEx Corp.’s home airport actually widened the gap with Hong Kong, due to a drop in shipments from Continue Reading

Two of Canada’s provinces are making an effort to break down barriers in order to boost transportation efficiency. Officials in Alberta and Saskatchewann signed a Memorandum of Understanding that is intended to help grow both provinces’ economies. The agreement is set to harmonize permit conditions for, among others: oversize and overweight loads; the movement of manufactured homes; and relating to the National Continue Reading

Struggling economic times tend to heighten protectionist urges, but the former U.S. Ambassador to Canada is espousing the need for free-trade initiatives. Speaking recently in Quebec City, Gordon Griffin cited the growth that both Canada and the United States have experienced as a result of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). From Continue Reading

The latest move in a decades-long battle to open the U.S.-Mexican borders to Mexican trucks is a $6 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico’s trucking lobby for financial losses the industry has experienced in the last three years. Under the Bush administration in 2007, registered Mexican truckers were allowed to operate inside the Continue Reading

NAFTA trade posted the biggest decline on record, as U.S.-Canada trade and U.S.-Mexico trade plunged more than 33 percent and 25 percent respectively from the previous year. Truck, rail and pipeline Continue Reading