Foreign demand for U.S. assets skyrockets in November, says Treasury Department

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Foreigners snapped up long-term U.S. securities at such a rate in November that demand hit its highest point in more than two years, the Treasury Department said today.

Investors abroad bought $129.3 billion worth of U.S. assets, $126.8 billion more than the $2.5 billion worth of foreign securities sold. It was the largest boom since the $128.9 billion in net foreign purchases recorded in October 2007.

The October 2009 net was a paltry $19.3 billion.

Private foreign investors purchased $96 billion in U.S. securities, while official institutions abroad spent $33.3 billion.

Though still the largest owner of Treasury securities, China’s holdings dropped $9.3 billion to $789.6 billion in November. Japan, the next biggest holder, increased its holdings by $11.4 billion to $757.3 billion.
Britain’s holdings rose to $277.5 billion, while Russia’s jumped to $128.1 billion.

-- Tiffany Hsu