(PDF), from the Federal
Reserve Bulletin, 2006.Preliminary data from the latest annual survey of foreign portfolio holdings of U.S. securities are now available. The survey measured foreign holdings as of June 30, 2007, to be $9,772 billion, with $3,130 billion held in U.S. equities, $6,007 billion in U.S. long-term debt securities (securities with an original term-to-maturity in excess of one year), and $635 billion in U.S. short-term debt securities. The previous survey for June 30, 2006 found $2,430 billion in foreign holdings of U.S. equities, $4,733 billion in U.S. long-term debt securities, and $615 billion in short-term U.S. debt securities. A detailed survey report, which will include final data as well as additional data detail, is expected to be available at end-April 2008. The survey was a joint effort of the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Three data tables are presented below. Each table presents holdings by country of foreign holder. The first table shows foreign holdings of U.S. securities split into holdings of equities, long-term debt, and short-term debt. The second table divides holdings of long-term debt securities by type of issuer as follows: U.S. Treasury, U.S. government agency asset-backed, U.S. government agency non-asset-backed, U.S. corporate and other asset-backed, and U.S. corporate and other non-asset-backed. The third table shows separately foreign holdings of short-term U.S. Treasury, U.S. government agencies, and corporate (and other) debt securities.
It should be noted that in many cases it is not possible to accurately determine
the country of residence of the beneficial owner of U.S. securities. Securities
are often held in custody in countries other than the beneficial owner's country
of residence. Respondents on this survey, in turn, may only know where the securities
are held in custody. Thus, excessive foreign holdings may be attributed to countries
that are major custodial centers, such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Belgium,
and Luxembourg. Additional information on survey methodology and accuracy can
be found in the article,
Understanding U.S. Cross-Border Securities Data
(PDF), from the Federal
Reserve Bulletin, 2006.
Surveys of foreign portfolio holdings of U.S. securities are conducted annually and measure foreign holdings as of end-June each year. Complementary surveys of U.S. holdings of foreign securities are conducted annually as of end-December. Questions about the survey can be directed to Carol Bertaut or Dwight Wolkow (use the "Contact TIC" link at the upper right-side of the webpage). Questions from the news media should be directed to Rob Saliterman at (202) 622-2960 in the Office of Public Affairs at the Department of the Treasury.
The Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System wish to thank all of the institutions who participated in the survey, without whose efforts the survey would not have been possible.
Press Release of February 29, 2008 at 4 p.m.
Last Updated: March 3, 2008