ISTANBUL

Canada saw its trade deficit widening in May from the previous month, according to figures released Wednesday by Statistics Canada.

The North American country's merchandise exports decreased 2.6%, while imports fell 1.6% in April, the statistical agency said in a statement.

"As a result, Canada's merchandise trade deficit with the world widened from $1.3 billion in April to $1.9 billion in May," it added. "This represents a third consecutive monthly deficit."

The market expectation was to show a trade deficit of $1.3 billion, while the trade deficit figure for April was revised to $1.3 billion from $1 billion.

Total exports were down 2.6% to $62.4 billion, the lowest level since July 2023, while total imports decreased 1.6% to approximately $64.4 billion.

Overall, export decreases were observed in eight of the 11 product sections, led by unwrought gold with a decline of 17.1%.

Import increases, meanwhile, were recorded in six of the 11 sections, which were led by a whopping 45.9% decrease in imports of unwrought gold, silver and platinum group metals and their alloys.