Japan has surpassed China as the biggest official holder of US Treasuries as the falling yen exchange rate attracts more dollars into the country and the higher-yielding bonds lure Japanese investors.
China pegs its currency to the dollar, which has recovered strongly this year. At the same time, growth in the Asian giant is slowing, leading it to reinvest more of its foreign earnings domestically, according to Ian Lyngen, a strategist at CRT Capital.
That has caused China’s overall holdings of US Treasury bills and bonds to dip to $1.223tn in February, down from $1.273tn in the same month last year, according to the latest Treasury International Capital data.