Press Releases

Preliminary Annual Report on U.S. Holding of Foreign Securities

(Archived Content)

WASHINGTON – Preliminary data from an annual survey of U.S. portfolio holdings of foreign securities at year-end 2009 were released today and posted on the Treasury web site at (https://auth.treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/tic/Pages/fpis).  Final survey results, which will include additional detail as well as revisions to the data, will be reported on October 29, 2010.
 
The survey was undertaken jointly by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 
 
A complementary survey measuring foreign holdings of U.S. securities also is conducted annually.  Data from the most recent such survey, which reports on securities held on June 30, 2010, are currently being processed. Preliminary results are expected to be reported on February 28, 2011.
 
Overall Preliminary Results
 
The survey measured U.S. holdings at  year-end 2009 of approximately $6.0 trillion, with $4.0 trillion held in foreign equities, $1.6 trillion in foreign long-term debt securities (original term-to-maturity in excess of one year), and $0.4 trillion held in foreign short-term debt securities.  The previous such survey, conducted as of year-end 2008, measured U.S. holdings of $4.3 trillion, with $2.7 trillion held in foreign equities, $1.3 trillion in foreign long-term debt securities and $0.3 trillion held in foreign short-term debt securities.
 
Table 1.  U.S. holdings of foreign securities, by type of security, as of survey dates[1]
 
                                                            (Billions of dollars)
 
Type of Security
Dec. 31, 2008
Dec. 31, 2009
 
 
 
Long-term Securities
4,009
5,589
                Equity
2,748
3,995
                Long-term debt
1,261
1,594
Short-term debt securities
282
387
 
 
 
Total
4,291
5,977

 

Table 2.  U.S. holdings of foreign securities, by country of issuer and type of security, for the countries attracting the most U.S. portfolio investment, as of December 31, 2009

                                                                                  (Billions of dollars, except as noted)

 
 
Country or region
Total
        Equity
Long-Term Debt
Short-Term Debt
1
United Kingdom
958
562
240
156
2
Canada
540
295
220
26
3
Japan
419
371
41
8
4
Cayman Islands
373
148
217
8
5
France
362
251
82
30
6
Switzerland
305
298
6
1
7
Germany
294
193
80
21
8
Australia
276
128
107
41
9
Netherlands
233
109
106
18
10
Brazil
213
180
32
*
11
Bermuda
148
121
27
*
12
Ireland
120
79
26
15
13
Spain
113
87
26
*
14
Korea, South
105
88
16
1
15
China, Mainland
102
102
1
*
16
Luxembourg
94
32
57
6
17
Hong Kong
93
91
1
*
18
Mexico
88
65
23
*
19
Italy
79
59
16
4
20
Taiwan
77
77
*
0
21
Sweden
76
44
26
6
22
India
65
62
3
*
23
Israel
59
44
14
*
24
Netherlands Antilles
57
56
1
*
25
South Africa
54
49
4
0
 
Rest of world
674
404
222
46
 
Total
5,977
3,995
1,594
387

 

[1]   The stock of foreign securities for December 31, 2009 reported in this survey may not, for a number of reasons, correspond to the stock of foreign securities on December 31, 2008, plus cumulative flows reported in Treasury's transactions reporting system.  The final report on U.S. holdings of foreign securities as of end-year 2009 will contain an analysis of the relation between the stock and flow data.