China Now Owns $1.14 Trillion of US Treasury Securities

The US Treasury Department recently released their "Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities" report for the month of March.

China continued to lead the way in the latest report from the Treasury Department, as they were reported as owning a total of $1.145 trillion in US Treasury Securities in the month of March. China cut back on their US debt holdings by 0.8% in March, bringing their total down from $1.154 trillion to $1.145 trillion.

It should be noted that this is the fifth straight month that China has reduced their total US debt holdings - in October of 2010, China held $1.175 trillion in US debt, and they have been paring back their holdings ever since.

Japan, on the other hand, has been steadily increasing their holdings of US debt over the past year. According to the Treasury Department, Japan has increased their holdings of US debt by 14.37% over the past year. As of March, Japan held $907.9 billion in US debt.

The United Kingdom increased their US debt holdings by over 10% in March, as they moved from $295.5 billion to $325.2 billion during the month.

Here is the top ten list of the largest foreign debt holders of US debt as of March/2011:

China - $1.145 trillion
Japan - $907.9 billion
United Kingdom - $325.2 billion
Oil Exporters - $222.3 billion
All Others - $199.1 billion
Brazil - $193.5 billion
Taiwan - $156.1 billion
Carib Banking Centers - $154.8 billion
Russia - $127.8 billion
Hong Kong - $122.1 billion

Of the countries that were listed in the US Treasury Department's report, Sweden posted the largest % increase in US debt holdings (+20.34%), while France posted the largest decrease (-41.39%).

Source: Largest Foreign Holders of US Debt

Filed under: General Knowledge