MarketWatch alerted me to the fact that foreign private investors dumped the most Treasuries ever in the month of September based on Treasury International Capital System (TICS) data:
Foreign investors were net sellers of $18.3 billion of Treasurys in September, the largest amount on record, Treasury Department data released Friday showed. Overall, foreign investors bought a net $17.9 billion of long-term U.S. securities in September, down sharply from the $78.5 billion purchased in the prior month. This includes Treasurys, mortgage-related bonds, corporate bonds and equities. According to the data, China-based investors slightly increased their holdings of U.S. Treasurys in the month. Foreigners made net purchases of $23.4 billion of U.S. equities in September, up from $6.1 billion in the prior monthThe official data is here if you want to see it. Here's hoping that private foreigners get rid of more of this dollar-denominated detritus in the near-term as we head towards the fiscal cliff and the inevitable downgrades of US sovereign debt. That should teach those current account deficit lovers a thing or two.