U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

EMBARGOED UNTIL 4PM (EST) DECEMBER 29, 2006

CONTACT Brookly McLaughlin (202) 622-2920 

REPORT ON U.S. PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS OF FOREIGN SECURITIES 

AT END-YEAR 2005 

The findings from an annual survey of U.S. portfolio holdings of foreign securities at year-end 2005 are 

released today and posted on the U.S. Treasury web site (www.treas.gov/tic/fpis.html). 

The survey was undertaken jointly by the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and 

the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Future surveys are scheduled to be carried out 

annually. The next report will present results from the survey for year-end 2006. 

A complementary survey measuring foreign portfolio holdings of U.S. securities is also carried out 

annually. Preliminary results from the most recent such survey, covering securities held as of June 30, 

2006, are expected to be reported by March 30, 2007. 

Overall Results

The survey measured the value of U.S. holdings of foreign securities at year-end 2005 of approximately 

$4,609 billion, with $3,318 billion held in foreign equities, $1,028 billion in foreign long-term debt 

securities (original term-to-maturity in excess of one year), and $263 billion in foreign short-term debt 

securities. The previous survey measured U.S. holdings at year-end 2004 of approximately $3,787 

billion, with $2,560 billion held in foreign equities, $993 billion in foreign long-term debt securities, and 

$233 billion in foreign short-term debt securities (see Table 1). 

U.S. holdings by country at the end of 2005 were by far the largest for the United Kingdom ($815 

billion), followed by Japan ($531 billion) and Canada ($419 billion) (see Table 2). 

The surveys are part of an internationally-coordinated effort under the auspices of the International 

Monetary Fund (IMF) to improve the measurement of portfolio asset holdings. 
Table 1. Value of U.S. holdings of foreign securities, by type of security, 

 at end-2004 and end-20051

 (Billions of dollars) 

Type of Security Dec. 31, 2004 Dec. 31, 2005

Long-term Securities 3,553 4,346

 equity 2,560 3,318

 long-term debt 993 1,028

Short-term debt securities 233 263

Total 3,787 4,609

U.S. Portfolio Investment by Country

Table 2. Value of U.S. holdings of foreign securities, by country and type of security, 

 for the countries attracting the most U.S. investment, as of December 31, 2005 

(Billions of dollars, except as noted) 

 Debt securities:

 Total Equities Long-term Short-term

 

1 United Kingdom 815 538 185 92 

2 Japan 531 493 35 2 

3 Canada 419 248 158 14 

4 France 274 205 48 21 

5 Cayman Islands 249 103 118 28 

6 Germany 217 158 49 10 

7 Switzerland 196 192 2 2 

8 Netherlands 192 133 52 7 

9 Bermuda 187 174 11 2 

10 Australia 128 71 49 9 

11 South Korea 119 110 8 0 

12 Brazil 90 69 22 0 

13 Mexico 86 58 28 0 

14 Italy 79 64 12 3 

15 Ireland 75 33 17 25 

16 Sweden 75 41 16 18 

17 Spain 70 64 6 1 

18 Taiwan 58 57 1 * 

19 Finland 49 44 4 0 

20 Netherlands Antilles 47 45 2 * 

21 Luxembourg 46 11 29 6 

22 Hong Kong, SAR 46 44 2 0 

23 Israel 44 29 15 0 

24 Singapore 36 29 7 0 

25 Norway 36 22 9 5 

 Rest of world 445 283 143 19 

 

 Total value of investment 4,609 3,318 1,028 263 

 * Greater than zero and less than $500 million. Note: items may not add to total due to rounding.

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1

 The stock of foreign securities for December 31, 2005, reported in this survey does not, for a number or reasons, correspond 

to the stock of foreign securities on December 31, 2004, plus cumulative flows reported in Treasury’s transactions reporting 

system. An analysis of the relation between the stock and flow data is available in Table 4 and the associated text of the final 

report on U.S. holdings of foreign securities at end-year 2005.