Japan surpasses China in February as top foreign holder of US Treasury securities

The Treasury Department says that Japan overtook China in February as the top foreign holder of U.S. Treasury securities, a position Japan last held in August 2008.

In its latest report, the department says that total foreign holdings of Treasury debt slipped a slight 0.9 percent in February to $6.16 trillion, down from a record of $6.22 trillion in January.

The holdings of China, normally the top holder of Treasury debt, slipped 1.2 percent to $1.22 trillion. The holdings of Japan fell 1.1 percent from the January level. China's decline was a bit larger, allowing Japan to slip into the top spot, $700 million above China.