Russia increased its holdings of U.S. Treasuries by 4 percent year-on-year in June, in a move analysts say is meant to diversify its international reserves and hedge against the escalating eurozone sovereign debt crisis.
Russia increased its holdings of U.S. debt instruments by 0.96 percent in June to $157.8 billion, registering investment build-up in America's most liquid financial assets for the fourth consecutive month, according to data from the U.S. Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve.
Mainland China remained the main buyer of U.S. Treasuries in June 2012 with a massive $1.164 trillion, followed by Japan with $1.119 trillion and a group of oil exporting countries with a total of $261.3 billion.
The U.S. Treasury Department includes Algeria, Bahrain, Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela in the category of oil exporting countries.
In total, investment by foreign countries in the U.S. economy grew by almost $35 billion in June to over $5.29 trillion.
Russia ranks eighth in the list of major holders of U.S. Treasuries.
Russia joined the group of the main buyers of the most liquid U.S. financial instruments in 2008, boosting its investment in U.S. securities 250 percent to $116.4 billion.
Russia’s investment in U.S. Treasuries started to decline from October 2010. slipping to $88.4 billion December 2011 from $89.7 billion in November.
