[Canada's Trade Deficit Hits Record High in 2025, Gold Price Surge Masks True Impact of Tariffs] According to Golden Finance, Canada's trade deficit expanded to CAD 31.3 billion last year, marking the largest annual trade deficit outside of the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary reason was the heavy blow dealt to Canada's key export industries by U.S. tariff increases. Apart from the business disruptions caused by public health measures in 2020, Canada's trade deficit in 2025 is the largest since data records began in 1988. Last year, Canada's annual export value fell by 0.2%, with most product categories experiencing a decline in export value. However, the strong surge in gold prices masked the true damage inflicted on Canada's exports by the trade war with the U.S. Last year, exports of unprocessed gold, silver, platinum group metals, and their alloys skyrocketed by 41.7%. Excluding this category, Canada's export value would have dropped significantly by 3%.