India’s purchase of US securities on the rise
19 Aug 2009
India has purchased American debt worth $39.3 billion this year till June, an almost two-fold increase compared to September last year. It was also up from $38.8 billion in the previous month.
In September 2008, when the financial turmoil took a turn for the worse with the bankruptcy of financial services entity Lehman Brothers, India's holding of US debt stood at just $20.3 billion, according to the US Treasury's monthly international capital report.
China, the biggest holder of American debt, trimmed its holdings to $776.4 billion at the end of June. In May, it had held such debt worth $801.5 billion.
The world's second largest economy, Japan, raised its holdings to $711.8 billion in June from $677.2 billion in the previous month.
Among the so-called emerging BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) nations, India has the least exposure to American debt.
Overall, foreign purchases of US long-term securities surged in June, reversing an outflow the previous month and signaling recovery of battered financial markets, Treasury data showed.