Goods valued at more than $909 billion crossed the U.S. border in trade with Canada and Mexico in 2007, 4.9 percent higher than the previous record set in 2006, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics.


BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, released the data as part of the third annual update of the North American Transportation Statistics online database.

Freight weighing nearly 606 million tons was transported through U.S. land borders, airports, and seaports to and from locations in Canada and Mexico in 2007.

U.S. merchandise trade with Canada and Mexico rose by more than $305 billion or by 50.6 percent between 2002 and 2007.

The value of freight shipments moving between the United States, Canada and Mexico grew at an average annual rate of nearly 8.5 percent per year between 2002 and 2007. The total value of U.S. freight shipments with Mexico grew 49.5 percent or 8.4 percent annually. Goods shipped in trade with Canada grew 51.2 percent or 8.6 percent annually.

Trucks carried 61 percent of this freight measured by value - $555 billion in 2007. Rail carried 15 percent, followed by maritime with 7 percent, pipeline with 8 percent, and air with 4 percent. Trucks was the largest modal increase in shipment value from 2006 to 2007 - $21 billion, followed by rail (up $9 billion), and pipeline (up $4 billion).