US data suggest importance of global standards

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01 Sep 2009

New US Treasury Department data show that US owners held over US$4.2 trillion of foreign securities at 31 December 2008, including US$2.7 trillion of foreign equity securities and another US$1.3 billion of foreign long-term debt.

On the flip side, foreign owners held around US$3.0 trillion of US equities and US$6.5 trillion of US long-term debt. These data are further evidence for a single set of accounting standards for both US and non-US reporting entities.

US Holdings of Foreign Securities: (US$ billion) Source: US Treasury Department, preliminary data released 31 August 2009

Type of Security

31 Dec 2007

31 Dec 2008

Long-term Securities

6,855

4,009

– Equity

– 5,248

– 2,748

– Long-term debt

– 1,607

– 1,261

Short-term debt securities

357

282

Total

7,212

4,291

Foreign Holdings of US Securities: (US$ billion) Source: US Treasury Department, data released April 2009

Type of Security

30 June 2007

30 June 2008

Long-term Securities

9,136

9,463

– Equity

– 3,130

– 2,969

– Long-term debt

– 6,007

– 6,494

Short-term debt securities

635

858

Total

9,772

10,322

 

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