	Selected Statistics on Foreign Holdings of Federal Debt

Federal debt represents, in large measure, the accumulated balance of federal borrowing of the U.S. government. The portion of gross federal debt held by the public consists primarily of investment in marketable U.S. Treasury securities. Table 1 provides December 2015 data, available as of March 2016, on estimated ownership of U.S. Treasury securities by type of investment and the percentage of that investment attributable to foreign investors. Data on major foreign holders of federal debt by country are provided in Table 2 . For decades, the United States has saved less than it invests. In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, investor demand for Treasury securities increased as investors undertook a "flight to safety."
This report presents current data on estimated ownership of U.S. Treasury securities and major holders of federal debt by country. Federal debt represents the accumulated balance of borrowing by the federal government. To finance federal borrowing, U.S. Treasury securities are sold to investors. Treasury securities may be purchased directly from the Treasury or on the secondary market by individual private investors, financial institutions in the United States or overseas, and foreign, state, or local governments. Foreign investors have held slightly less than half of the publicly held federal debt in recent years, prompting questions on the location of the foreign holders and how much debt they hold.
This report will be updated annually or as events warrant.