(Source:  USDOT’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics)

Tuesday, March 3, 2009 – Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, Canada and Mexico , was 13.1 percent lower in December 2008 than in December 2007, dropping to $52.9 billion, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (Table 1).  December was the second straight month with a year-to-year decline of greater than 13 percent.

The value of U.S. surface transportation trade with Canada and Mexico fell 12.8 percent in December from November (Table 2).  Month-to-month changes can be affected by seasonal variations and other factors. 

Surface transportation consists largely of freight movements by truck, rail and pipeline.  About 88 percent of U.S. trade by value with Canada and Mexico moves on land.

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Seen below is the PDF version of the report.

[ipaper id=13078105]

(Source: Outsourced Logistics)

There are six discussions of ways to better manage transportation and delivery costs in “Creativity and Flexibility are Keys to Managing Rising Logistics Costs,” a white paper from Purolator USA. With particular focus on cross border freight traffic between the US and Canada, as well as shipments moving within the US, here are a few suggestions from Purolator to aid in controlling costs while not sacrificing service or standards.

Rethink Shipping Options. For example, reserve air transport only for those shipments that are extremely time sensitive and must be delivered by a specific date. Weigh the costs and time window since there are available ground shipment options that might get the job done.

Take Advantage of Governmental Trade Program Incentives. There are programs beyond NAFTA offered by both the US and Canadian governments to help shippers widen their customer bases. They include the Non-Resident Importer and Duty Drawback programs, among others. These and other governmental matters are discussed in the white paper.

Click here to read the entire article.