| Foreign holders of US treasuries, June 1998 | ||
| $ bn | (%) | |
| United Kingdom | 264.7 |
21.2 |
Japan |
264.1 |
21.2 |
Germany |
95.0 |
7.6 |
Opec countries |
49.8 |
4.0 |
Spain |
47.4 |
3.8 |
China |
45.2 |
3.6 |
Hong Kong |
39.5 |
3.2 |
Singapore |
34.7 |
2.8 |
Netherlands Antilles |
32.5 |
2.6 |
Taiwan |
30.9 |
2.5 |
Switzerland |
24.9 |
2.0 |
France |
22.1 |
1.8 |
Belgium/Luxembourg |
21.8 |
1.7 |
Mexico |
20.7 |
1.7 |
Canada |
13.0 |
1.0 |
Korea |
11.4 |
0.9 |
Thailand |
10.8 |
0.9 |
Others |
218.9 |
17.5 |
Total |
1247.4 |
100.0 |
| Source: US treasury department | ||
In an uncertain world, one thing is clear. Persistent rumours that a displeased or desperate Japan will cause financial mayhem by suddenly offloading its US government bond holdings is nonsense. This possibility is so universally reject by informed market participants that it’s hard to see how it ever gained any credibility.
“I don’t think Japanese holders dumping US government paper is a valid scenario,” says Kathy Matsuil, Goldman Sachs’s chief strategist in Tokyo.
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