Russia continues ditching US Treasuries as part of state de-dollarization policy

The Russian central bank has continued getting rid of US Treasury bonds, with the share of investments in American debt shrinking 19.2 percent in November, according to the US Treasury Department.

The statistics, commonly published with a three-month lag, show the share of Russian holdings totaled a modest $4.968 billion. Investments in short-term Treasury securities amounted to $3.4 billion, while holding of long-term obligations totaled $1.568 billion.

Russia used to be one of the major holders of US Treasuries. However, the country’s central bank has been steadily cutting this investment since May 2017, in line with the state-supported de-dollarization policy, and in response to sanctions imposed by the White House.

The regulator also turned to diversifying the national reserves, increasing bullion purchases in recent years to record levels, and earning the title of one of the world’s major gold purchasers.

Japan remains the biggest holder of US Treasury bonds, though the country’s investments in November dropped by $9 billion to $1.26 trillion. China, ranked the second-biggest holder of US state debt, increased its share slightly to $1.063 trillion. The UK is the third-biggest holder with $420.3 billion.

Overall, foreign holders of US sovereign debt decreased their holdings by $15 billion in November to $7.53 trillion.

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