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Japan Ties China As America's Largest Creditor As Foreigners Dump A Record Amount Of Treasurys

Tyler Durden's picture




 

One month ago when looking at the December update of foreign holdings of US Treasuries, and specifically the two largest foreign creditors, we said that China "sold another $6 billion in Treasurys in the last month of 2014, which would have made its US treasury holdings equal with those of Japan, if only Tokyo hadn't also sold over $10 billion in the same month."

Moments ago the January update was released, and while China continued selling US paper, liquidating another $5.2 billion in January and bringing its new total to the lowest since January 2013, Japan - yes that Japan whose central bank is now moentizing 100% of its own debt issuance because the country is now effectively insolvent and absent constant monetization of its debt it is finished - bought $8 billion in US debt, in the process trying China as America's largest foreign creditor for the first time in history, with both nations holdings $1.239 trillion in US TSYs.

 

But where things got truly surprising, is when looking at gross long-term flows of foreign capital, where we find that between private and official buyer and sellers of US assets, in January a record $55 billion in US Treasurys was sold - precisely in the month in which the yield on the 10Y plummeted, indicating once again that a short squeeze in syntehtic exposure via futures and derivatives (because shorting the 10Y was the other most popular hedge fund position entering 2015 alongside being long the USD) has far greater price formation power than what someone does with a measly $55 billion in underlying Treasurys (very relevant for the debate of physical vs paper gold) in any one month.

 

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Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:51 | 5895462 Fun Facts
Fun Facts's picture

It doesn't really matter so much who is doing the QE as long as someone is doing the QE, and this is how it should be viewed....in total. Without it, everything would collapse.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:18 | 5895564 angel_of_joy
angel_of_joy's picture

In all truth though, the US treasuries look much better than their own crap so for them it must be a "rush to quality", of sorts...

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:24 | 5895590 Harbanger
Harbanger's picture

Or a Seppuku of sorts.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:36 | 5895629 Publicus
Publicus's picture

Last one out turn off the lights.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:35 | 5895798 ThirteenthFloor
ThirteenthFloor's picture

If you'd like to see how the Chinese view American debt and Bond bubble, you may enjoy this Asia informative video.

http://youtu.be/K2hhck_kmz0

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:26 | 5895595 TuPhat
TuPhat's picture

I'm sure you meant that as sarc, Fun Facts.  But it will collapse with or without QE.  The unknown is 'when'.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 19:28 | 5895934 palmdetroit
palmdetroit's picture

Exactly. But that when could be 100 years ,. long after anyone here now gives a F

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 23:13 | 5896722 daveO
daveO's picture

Look at gold prices over the last 40 years. We won't have to wait another 100. The CB's are now gobbling up capital with ZIRP and NIRP. Gold will go parabolic as folks seek safety.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:12 | 5895737 TheReplacement
TheReplacement's picture

Ring around the rosie... They all fall down!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 23:40 | 5896829 chilli sauce
chilli sauce's picture

my roomate's step-mother makes $79 hourly on the laptop . She has been fired for 10 months but last month her pay was $18694 just working on the laptop for a few hours. see here... www.globe-report.com

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:51 | 5895463 dimwitted economist
dimwitted economist's picture

Great News! the market will Fucking LOVE it!!!!!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:51 | 5895468 TeethVillage88s
TeethVillage88s's picture

You have to add Hong Kong and China together = 1411.1 to Japans 1238.6.

The DTIC is a US Product and they can decide how they show the data, but we don't have to allow ourselves to get dumber.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:54 | 5895482 ghengis86
ghengis86's picture

Srant eye buy you paper too, ok round eye? No, they difflent Srant eye; you stick with us, ok? American have berry rarge penis; we have Pokemon and a central bank!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:57 | 5895488 fed_depression
fed_depression's picture

This brilliant plan by central bankers is a hedge against there own critical situation. By doing this now they unsure when it collapses everyone goes together.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:58 | 5895492 ghengis86
ghengis86's picture

Just like MAD with nukes. Financial nukes

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:38 | 5895641 seek
seek's picture

It's a lot easier to replace one global system with another when everyone fails.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 19:50 | 5895972 Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill's picture

Poison pill ?

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:58 | 5895493 headhunt
headhunt's picture

Margin call on all the $ shorts

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 16:59 | 5895497 Sudden Debt
Sudden Debt's picture

The markets won’t crash. 

It’s just that a cup of coffee will cost 200 dollars in a decade from now... and even 600 at starbucks...

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:03 | 5895515 Hohum
Hohum's picture

No significant rise in wages, no hyperinflation.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:07 | 5895534 Bell's 2 hearted
Bell's 2 hearted's picture

yep, that simple 

 

actually, deflation now boarding USS United States ...

 

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:41 | 5895651 angel_of_joy
angel_of_joy's picture

Deflation won't last, and it's relative. Your gas is cheaper, but how about your food ? Rent/mortgage ? Health insurance ? School tuition ? License fees ? These are all elements of every day life... Besides, those freshly printed money are already leaking out. That's why you have the increase in "asset" prices. It's a classic inflation sign, too much money chasing too few goods (or perceived as such).

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:56 | 5895696 booboo
booboo's picture

Just don't buy any deflated assets that have legacy cost, between the fed, state and local government gangs bangers they will tax you off that deflated asset lickity split and they got guns and "the law" on their side.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:19 | 5895574 Consuelo
Consuelo's picture

Hyper-anything is not necessary for a nation to experience a currency crisis.   In fact, all that holds this rattle-trap together currently is the marriage-of-convenience of doing trade in the $USD.    Nothing that series of foreign policy actions couldn't change within a matter of days if the stakes were high enough.

 

 

 

 

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:16 | 5895747 TheReplacement
TheReplacement's picture

The dollar has already been hyperinflated.  The reason we don't see it in the official numbers is because something like 90% of that inflation is exported due to the dollar being the GRC.  Kill the petrodollar and all the exported inflation go home.  Then you will see it.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:50 | 5895679 Sudden Debt
Sudden Debt's picture

In The weimar republic, hperinflation didn’t occur because everybody was making a shitload of moneY.

Farmers just didn’t wanted to sell their goods anymore for marks and international demand for marks was zero.

unemployment was actually skyhigh.

it happened when the state printed all their expenses because there was no income.

sounds familiar?

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:50 | 5895680 Sudden Debt
Sudden Debt's picture

In The weimar republic, hperinflation didn’t occur because everybody was making a shitload of moneY.

Farmers just didn’t wanted to sell their goods anymore for marks and international demand for marks was zero.

unemployment was actually skyhigh.

it happened when the state printed all their expenses because there was no income.

sounds familiar?

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:17 | 5895749 TheReplacement
TheReplacement's picture

It does sound familiar.  I'm sure I just read that word for where a little be earlier... can't recall where tho'.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:23 | 5896077 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

Real (as opposed to BLS CPI massaged) prices increases combined with stagnant wages are just as bad as hyperinflation, where prices and wages are growing at similar rates.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:00 | 5895500 suteibu
suteibu's picture

Japan missed its chance to become a sovereign nation again in 2010.  Kan, Noda, Abe all owned by the US.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:02 | 5895510 Hohum
Hohum's picture

That's better than Spain helping to bail out Greece!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:46 | 5895670 kiwimail
kiwimail's picture

Or Greece bailing out Ukraine!!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:02 | 5895511 MilwaukeeMark
MilwaukeeMark's picture

Time to start mandating all 401's. Company pensions and IRAs get moved into Myra's
Of course you will lose access to the equity.
Interest rates will be well below the real inflation rate.
You'll be taxed on any interest paid
There will be "means testing" before you can access your own funds.
It cannot be willed to your decendants.
It will revert back to the government upon your and spouses death.

There ... shortfall fixed

Oh ... and you will assured by a smiling liberal that this is all in your best interest and 47% of the public will buy that explanation

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 23:22 | 5896754 daveO
daveO's picture

The Rep's made student loans a superior, lifelong debt. So, I'm sure, they will raid pensions when they get desperate.

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:05 | 5895521 Doubleguns
Doubleguns's picture

with both nations holdings $1,239 trillion in US TSYs.

 

I think you mean billions, OR we are in deeper than I ever realized. 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:08 | 5895537 jerry_theking_lawler
jerry_theking_lawler's picture

Who's holding the other 15.6 Trillion in worthless US paper..?? Maybe they should donate it to Venezuela to help alleviate their TP crisis...

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:35 | 5895631 sessinpo
sessinpo's picture

The majority of debt is held by US persons or companies.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:40 | 5895806 Ham-bone
Ham-bone's picture

you want to try again???

Domestic Public (all US institutions, banks, insurers, pensions, banks, plus retail Treasury buyers) owns $4.4 trillion of $18.1 trillion.

Foreign holders own $6.2 trillion, Fed $2.5 trillion, intragov (trust fund "surplus") $5.1 trillion.

http://econimica.blogspot.com/2015/03/treasury-buying-pyramid-ponzi-or-gdp.html

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:29 | 5896092 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

Hello, pink elephant in the room!  By far the largest holder of US debt is the Fed, purchased with printed money.  And remember net debt is $13 trillion.  The other $5 trillion is money the government pretends it owes to social security and a bunch of other government "trust funds".

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 23:25 | 5896766 daveO
daveO's picture

The FED also put around $5T in the GSE's. 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:18 | 5895569 Dragon HAwk
Dragon HAwk's picture

So instead of Handing out food stamps, the Government can hand  the poor people in America treasury Bills. they can use those Securities to get other loans, to buy groceries beer and cigarettes  everybody would be rich.. I know i am missing some thing here.. but hey it's all good

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:18 | 5895570 oudinot
oudinot's picture

Great article, bravo!!

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:38 | 5895639 sessinpo
sessinpo's picture

Government bonds are slavery.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:42 | 5895656 tarabel
tarabel's picture

 

 

Let's see...

China -5

Japan +8

Does this mean that China is now holding a lot more yen than it did last month? Or is this merely a sign that the smart money is getting packed into suitcases and taken overseas? 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:46 | 5895669 f16hoser
f16hoser's picture

You might say "Japan is a Radient Beacon" for all the Central banks.

Japan will cease to be a viable country within 5 years. All it's peoples will die Broke/Insolvent of Radiation poisening. Weird.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 17:57 | 5895701 Herdee
Herdee's picture

Maybe China can make more money in its own currency and through their different trade agreements in direct currency transactions.They're also going to be financing some pretty big projects around the globe including ones in England.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/11473983...

Most likely in the near future,since Russia and China have competing systems to SWIFT being finished soon.These are outside the U.S. Dollar system.

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:09 | 5895723 Never One Roach
Never One Roach's picture

It's sad to see japan so fu*ked over. Industrious people, safe streets, clean and great food. If it weren't for Fuki-radiation-causing-leukemia and thyroid, brain and other cancers, it would be a great place to move to [if you could afford it].

Greed and corruption brings down some of the best nations.

 

http://fukushimaupdate.com/

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:14 | 5896038 Clowns on Acid
Clowns on Acid's picture

Yeh fortunately for the US they allowed in all the illegal Mexicans... that stopped the rot.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 18:55 | 5895842 Elliptico
Elliptico's picture

Isn't the Fed the largest creditor?

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 19:18 | 5895900 polo007
polo007's picture

According to Natixis:

http://www.ge.tt/5osnEOC2/v/0?c

March 13, 2015

What are the differences in economies where debt ratios are very high?

Debt ratios (public, private and total) are at present extremely high in a vast majority of OECD countries. How does this change the functioning of these countries' economies?

• Fiscal policy becomes more restrictive and can hardly become very counter-cyclical due to high public debt ratios;

• The private sector deleverages, and monetary policy can no longer use the credit channel;

• Central banks have an incentive to conduct expansionary monetary policies to facilitate deleveraging.

In countries where debt ratios are very high, we can therefore expect to see:

• Weaker growth (a restrictive fiscal policy, private-sector deleveraging);

• Deeper recessions (lack of counter-cyclical capacity of fiscal and monetary policies);

• And yet a sharp rise in asset prices (equities, real estate), due to expansionary monetary policies and long-term interest rates that are lower than growth rates.

Paradoxically, excessive debt ratios can be positive for equities and real estate.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 19:22 | 5895919 unirealist
unirealist's picture

So Japan is effectively printing yen to loan the US money so it can pay the interest on its debt?

I'm sure that will have a happy ending.

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:31 | 5896098 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

How bizzare would it be to have Japan go on a hyperinflationary death spiral funding the US debt?

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 20:01 | 5895997 bentaxle
bentaxle's picture

Japan is the new Belgium. China wants out of UST's, the problem is/was doing it without crashing the bond market with over-supply. Conveniently, along comes "3 arrow Abe" with impeccable timing and Beijing takes full advantage, shovelling its "shit" to Tokyo, at a profit.

History will surely look back on Japan, shorting gold at the same time as it is buying up all the debt it can get its hands on, as the biggest bunch of dipshits ever!

 

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 21:46 | 5896347 Wild Theories
Wild Theories's picture

don't forget luxemburg/caymen Islands and Ireland, those locales have also entered the UST buyer list with Belgium

Ham-bone's link upthread, down middle of page, chart "notable UST foreign owners" shows it pretty clearly

Mon, 03/16/2015 - 21:45 | 5896383 TheAntiProgressive
TheAntiProgressive's picture

Sooo... now what??  They (the world) sells their US treasury holdings back to the USA, at pretty ugly exchange rates, and then use the sovereign proceeds for more domestic QE there in thier country, what??? to pay debt? sovereign or bank debt, where????  Isn't this the epotome of buying high and selling low?  If I am right, one might think it smacks a little of desperation.  Just rambling thoughts, not my area of expertise by any means.  There are more here, much more qualified.

Tue, 03/17/2015 - 05:11 | 5897232 Zidane1998
Zidane1998's picture

So all that matters is derivatives....? Or will the true "market" affect derivatives at one point...? As we're seeing outflows?

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