NAFTA trade surged in February

The value of surface transportation moving between the United States and its North American trading partners in February reached $59.5 billion, a 24.1-percent increase over February 2009 and the largest year-over-year rise since the government began tracking activity in 1995, the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) said yesterday.

The value of goods moving in February by truck, rail, and pipeline between the United States and Canada and between the United States and Mexico rose 4.9 percent over January figures, BTS said. Still, the value of goods shipped in the NAFTA trades during February was 14.3 percent below the value recorded in February 2008.

The value of goods moving via surface between the United States and Canada hit $36.3 billion, up 21.7 percent from February 2009. The value of goods in the United States-Mexico trade totaled $23.2 billion, up 28 percent from year-ago levels, BTS said. More information can be found at BTS's Web site.