Saskatchewan’s export sector took a sharp downturn in July, with opposition critics blaming Premier Scott Moe for delaying a trade mission to China until this fall.
New Statistics Canada data released Wednesday show Saskatchewan’s merchandise exports to China fell 21.1 per cent in July. Year-to-date, exports to China have dropped 28.8 per cent, with a 48.5 per cent decline compared to July 2024.
Kim Breckner, the NDP’s trade and export development critic, said producers have been left to bear the brunt of tariffs while Moe waited months to act.
“It should not take six months of job-killing tariffs for this Premier to hop on a plane and start doing his job,” Breckner said in a statement. “The Premier should have started planning this mission as soon as tariffs were threatened, not a year later during harvest.”
Until last week, Moe had argued that lobbying China was the responsibility of the federal government. The NDP is also calling on the government to release records showing what Saskatchewan’s trade office in China has accomplished in the past six months.
“We need our trade offices firing on all cylinders and delivering results for farms and businesses in our province,” Breckner said. “The canola tariffs are one of the biggest issues facing our province right now and I know a lot of people are wondering if this government has done anything yet to move the needle.”
The downturn was not limited to China. Statistics Canada reported Saskatchewan’s exports to the United States dropped 25.1 per cent year-over-year in July. Overall, the province’s merchandise exports are down 3.8 per cent year-to-date and 13.1 per cent compared to last July.
Moe has previously said Saskatchewan has been largely insulated from global trade tensions, but the latest data suggest otherwise.
The Premier is scheduled to lead a trade mission to China in the coming weeks.