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Trade Partner Profile: Middle East and North Africa

Canadian Economics

By: CBoC Economics Team

In 2024, Canada exported approximately $10.4 billion CAD worth of products to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region¹, representing about 1 per cent of all Canadian exports. Imports from the region totalled $9.8 billion.

  • Canada’s exports to MENA encompass a diverse range of products, including military equipment, automobiles, aircraft, machinery, agricultural goods, and pharmaceuticals. Canada’s primary trading partners in the region are the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Türkiye. In 2024, exports to these nations accounted for roughly 70 per cent of all Canadian exports to MENA.
  • Exports of Canadian agricultural products, including cereals, oilseeds, and vegetables, have grown steadily over the past decade. Since 2014, exports to key markets such as Algeria, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye, and Iran have roughly doubled, reaching $2.2 billion in 2024. These markets now account for approximately 10 per cent of all Canadian agricultural exports.
  • Despite the relatively small share of total exports, significant growth opportunities exist. Factors such as rapid population growth, an expanding middle class, and increasing water scarcity will drive demand for agricultural² and construction products.³ Additionally, MENA economies, especially the richer ones that depend on oil, could be customers for products related to the energy transition and emissions reductions.
  • On the import side, Canada’s primary imports from MENA include petroleum oil—sourced mainly from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Türkiye, and the UAE—and various iron and steel products originating from Türkiye and the UAE.
  • Canada has established trade agreements with two countries in the region: Israel and Jordan. The Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA), initiated in 1997 and subsequently updated, enhances access to the Israeli market by eliminating or reducing tariffs on agricultural, agri-food, and fisheries products. The Canada-Jordan Free Trade Agreement, implemented in 2012, marked Canada’s first trade agreement with an Arab nation.
  • Notably, Canada does not have free trade agreements in place with other major partners in the region. Working towards free trade agreements would offer economic benefits, by unlocking access to growing exports markets and supporting bilateral investment flows.

Key Regional Trade Partners

  • United Arab Emirates (UAE): Last year, Canada exported approximately $2.46 billion to the UAE, primarily comprising lentils, oil seeds, and wheat.
  • Saudi Arabia: Exports totalled around $1.91 billion in 2024, mainly consisting of military equipment, motor vehicles, pharmaceuticals, and machinery.
  • Algeria: Exports exceeded $1.37 billion in 2024, driven by soybeans, iron ore, and wheat.
  • Türkiye: Canada exported over $1.23 billion to Türkiye, with lentils and scrap ferrous metal being significant contributors.
  • Morocco: Canada exported roughly $820 million of goods to Morocco in 2024, led by shipments of cereals.
  • Israel: Canada exported a diverse mix of products to Israel in 2024 including motor vehicles, soya beans, fruit and pharmaceuticals. In total, exports totalled roughly $464 million in 2024.
  • Iran: Following the lifting of several sanctions, exports rose from $98.5 million in 2018 to nearly $342 million in 2019, reaching $410 million in 2024, of which the predominant product was soybeans.

Beyond Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Canada’s exports to other Gulf states (Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Qatar) include iron ore, motor vehicles, and wheat, primarily destined for Bahrain and Iraq.

Vehicles, agricultural products and machinery dominate trade flows

  • Vehicles: Canada exported vehicles valued at approximately $2.05 billion in 2024. Of this, around $1.23 billion were military vehicles to Saudi Arabia, and $410 million were passenger vehicles to the UAE. Smaller quantities of passenger, ranging between $45 million and $70 million, were shipped to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Libya, Israel, and Türkiye.
  • Cereals: In 2024, Canada exported nearly $1.37 billion worth of cereals to MENA, with two-thirds being wheat and meslin destined for Morocco and Algeria. Approximately $123 million worth was sent to the UAE.
  • Oil Seeds: Exports amounted to almost $958 million, with Algeria and Iran receiving about 80 per cent of soybean exports.
  • Vegetables: Canada exported significant quantities of lentils to Türkiye ($391.2 million) and the UAE ($287.3 million).
  • Machinery: Exports include computers (mainly to the UAE) and jet engines (to Türkiye and the UAE).
  • Aircraft: Exports, including helicopters, airplanes, satellites, and launch vehicles, primarily went to the UAE, totalling $346.2 million.
  • Natural Resources: Iron ore exports were significant to Bahrain ($138.2 million) and Egypt ($104 million) where the material is used in steel production.
  • Pharmaceuticals: Canada exported just over $137 million in pharmaceutical products, split evenly between Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Economic and demographic shifts signal opportunities:

  • Demographic shifts in MENA, characterized by a young population and growing middle class, will see demand for imports such as motor vehicles, electronics, and food products grow. Rapid urbanization, especially in Gulf states and North Africa, will drive residential construction and infrastructure development, boosting demand for materials like lumber and aluminum.
  • As MENA countries expand nuclear energy initiatives to diversify energy sources and reduce carbon emissions, demand for reliable uranium supplies is anticipated to rise. Canada, being a leading uranium producer, is well-positioned to meet this demand and strengthen export ties with the region.
  • Regional conflicts pose a risk to trade flows in the region. For instance, Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea have necessitated rerouting vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, increasing transit times and shipping costs. Potential sanctions on Israel, threatened in a recent joint statement by Canada, France and the United Kingdom, pose risks to Canadian exports, particularly in sectors like industrial machinery, aerospace, and chemicals.
  • Environmental challenges, including increasing water scarcity, are expected to reduce local agricultural productivity in MENA, increasing demand for agriculture imports. Canada’s abundant freshwater resources and stable agricultural output position it to meet this growing demand.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars

Chart 1

What Canada Exports to MENA

(2024 exports, $CAD, billions)

Alt text: Bar chart indicating Canada's main exports to MENA. In order, they are: wheat and meslin, military vehicles, soya beans, legumes, motor vehicles, iron ore and concentrates, aircraft, medicaments, rape or colza seeds, aircraft launching gear, ferrous waste and scrap.

Sources: U.N. Comtrade, The Conference Board of Canada

Chart 2

What MENA Imports from the World

($US, billions)

Alt text: Bar chart indicating main imports to MENA from the world. In order, they are: motor vehicles and parts, petroleum oil, gold, ferrous waste and scrap, cell phones, jewellery, coal, computers, medicaments, iron or non-alloy steel, aircraft, aluminium and copper.

Notes: Bars highlighted in red indicate export opportunities for Canada. Trade includes inter-regional trade between MENA coutries.
Sources: U.N. Comtrade, The Conference Board of Canada

  1. Countries Included in MENA: Algeria, Bahrain, Cyprus, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.
  2. Le Mouël, C., Forslund, A., Marty, P., Manceron, S., Marajo-Petitzon, E., Caillaud, M. A., Dumas, P., & Schmitt, B. (2023). Can the Middle East-North Africa region mitigate the rise of its food import dependency under climate change? Regional environmental change, 23(2), 52.
  3. AECOM, MENA Economic Review 2024, accessed June 10, 2025

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