Reopening the economy boosted Quebec exports in 'historic' fashion in May

MONTREAL -- The gradual reopening of the Quebec economy after the forced pause caused by the COVID-19 pandemic fuelled a May recovery of Quebec exports after an April plunge. It is being described as "historic" by the Quebec institute of statistics (ISQ).

The increase was 4.8 per cent, seasonally adjusted and in constant dollars, according to ISQ figures released Tuesday. In comparison, there was an 18 per cent drop in April, when activities in several sectors of the economy deemed non-essential were disrupted.

The numbers are higher than the Canadian average, where the monthly change in exports was 0.8 per cent, following the 19 per cent drop in April.

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Quebec saw its imports fall 4 per cent, which was the fourth consecutive monthly decline.

In May, Quebec exports picked up thanks to the performance of categories such as airlines (+58.9).

However, since the start of the year, exports have declined 6.9 per cent compared to the same period last year, the ISQ pointed out. The drop was 21.7 per cent on the import side.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 14, 2020.