We present new evidence on the gendered consequences of trade, specifically examining shifts in foreign demand. We construct panel mean-aggregated local labor market outcomes for women at the provincial level. Our Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS) approach suggests that an increase in foreign demand shock has a limited impact on reducing gender gaps and negatively affects total employment and the share of female-dominant sectors. This adverse employment effect is primarily driven by resource-based sectors, typically male-dominant industries. Further investigation reveals that the most affected women workers are characterized as married and low-educated. These results offer crucial insights into trade and women’s empowerment: relying on resource-based commodities does little to empower women, and trade policies should not solely focus on export activities in their narratives.