Markets Wired

As Prepared for Delivery

Good afternoon. I’m very glad to have had the opportunity to meet with Minister Marcel today.

Our meeting today—and my trip to Chile—come in the context of an already strong bilateral economic relationship.

The U.S. and Chile have had a Free Trade Agreement in place for 20 years, enabling substantial trade and investment between our two countries. And just last year a Bilateral Tax Treaty entered into force.

This treaty is a recognition of the significant investments that Americans have in Chile and the welcome investments Chileans are making in the United States.

In fact, our tax treaty with Chile is the first such treaty the U.S. has entered into in a decade.

Now, we are building on this foundation and further deepening our economic ties and our collaboration across a wide range of areas.

In my meeting with Minister Marcel today, we discussed the priorities shared by the U.S. and Chile and the many additional opportunities for further collaboration between our countries.

This starts with each of our country’s ambitious climate goals and the tremendous joint opportunity to build resilient and green supply chains.

At home in the United States, President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act, and CHIPS and Science Act are fueling massive investments in infrastructure, clean energy, and manufacturing.

For example, tax credits through the Inflation Reduction Act make it cheaper to invest in energy-efficiency upgrades and buy electric vehicles.

Chile is pursuing its own impressive agenda, including leading the way as the first sovereign issuer of green bonds in the region. I know that Chile recently received an award from Latin Finance on its impressive program for sustainable bonds.

Chile’s leadership in this space was on display today in the fascinating discussion I had with Minister Marcel and several private sector firms that are helping to drive Chile’s green transition.

I commend the minister and his whole team for their strong efforts to keep Chile at the vanguard of this exciting space.

Furthering both our climate agendas—and our energy security—also depends on building green and resilient supply chains, involving both the U.S. and Chile.

As a leading producer of both copper and lithium, Chile has a critical role to play in the supply chains that will power our world’s transition to clean energy. American companies are investing. And we see opportunities to further integrate our supply chains with benefits for both our economies.

Our ongoing and potential collaboration also extends far beyond clean energy.

As one example, I affirm Treasury’s interest in supporting Chile’s commitment to increasing foreign direct investment and protecting its national security through continued collaboration on investment screening best practices.

And there is significant scope for Chile and the United States to work together in the context of multilateral forums such as the Inter-American Development Bank.

We are working together, for example, to approve a new ambitious Institutional Strategy for the Bank next month, as well as a historic capital increase that would double the size of its private sector arm, IDB Invest.

These efforts will provide crucial financing to the region, including to advance investments in clean energy.

There are of course many other areas of possible cooperation as well.

I again congratulate Minister Marcel on his leadership and look forward to further collaboration between the U.S. Treasury Department and Ministry of Finance as we continue to move forward on our many shared priorities.

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WASHINGTON – Preliminary data from the June 2023 benchmark survey of foreign portfolio holdings of U.S. securities were released today on the Treasury website here. Final survey results, which will include additional detail as well as possible revisions to the preliminary data, will be reported on April 30, 2024.  The survey was undertaken jointly by Treasury, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.  The next annual survey will cover holdings at the end of June 2024; preliminary data are expected to be released by February 28, 2025.

Complementary surveys measuring U.S. holdings of foreign securities are also carried out annually. Data from the most recent survey, reporting on securities held at year-end 2023, are currently being processed. Preliminary results are expected to be reported by August 30, 2024.

Overall Preliminary Results

The survey measured the value of foreign holdings of U.S. securities as of June 30, 2023, to be $26,863 billion, with $13,715 billion held in U.S. equities, $11,964 billion held in U.S. long-term debt securities ^[1] (of which $1,555 billion are holdings of asset-backed securities (ABS)^[2] and $10,409 billion are holdings of non-ABS securities), and $1,184 billion held in U.S. short-term debt securities.  The previous survey, conducted as of June 30, 2022, measured the value of total foreign holdings of U.S. securities at $24,893 billion, with holdings of $12,177 billion in U.S. equities, $11,591 billion in U.S. long-term debt securities, and $1,124 billion in U.S. short-term debt securities (see Table A). 

Table A.  Foreign holdings of U.S. securities, by type of security, as of recent survey dates

(Billions of dollars)

Type of security	June 30, 2022			June 30, 2023
Long-term securities	23,768			25,679
Equities		12,177			13,715
Long-term debt		11,591			11,964
Asset-backed		1,494			1,555
Other		10,097			10,409
Short-term debt securities	1,124			1,184
Total	24,893			26,863
Of which: Official	5,946			6,155

Table B.  Foreign holdings of U.S. securities, by country and type of security, for the major investing countries into the U.S., as of June 30, 2023

(Billions of dollars)

		Total	Equities	Long-term debt		Short
				ABS	Other	-term
1	United Kingdom	2,622	1,458	98	967	99
2	Japan	2,496	837	270	1,320	69
3	Cayman Islands	2,356	1,568	95	565	128
4	Luxembourg	2,099	1,087	57	826	128
5	Canada	2,055	1,459	138	428	30
6	Ireland	1,478	842	65	422	150
7	China, mainland	1,432	309	267	851	5
8	Switzerland	1,087	683	10	331	63
9	Belgium	984	86	20	805	72
10	Taiwan	717	112	211	388	6
11	Norway	694	511	*	181	1
12	France	677	363	36	257	22
13	Singapore	665	408	24	224	9
14	Germany	623	412	12	187	13
15	Korea, South	585	387	37	149	12
16	Australia	572	474	14	71	14
17	Netherlands	478	320	17	137	4
18	Hong Kong	435	168	10	228	30
19	Kuwait	372	279	6	62	26
20	Sweden	365	315	*	50	1
21	Bermuda	365	132	41	148	45
22	Saudi Arabia	305	184	4	107	11
23	India	248	12	*	233	2
24	Brazil	246	17	*	224	5
25	British Virgin Islands	220	135	3	59	23
	Rest of world	2,685	1,159	120	1,190	217
	Total	26,863	13,715	1,555	10,409	1,184
	of which: Foreign official	6,155	1,567	663	3,701	224

*  Less than $500 million but more than zero.

[i].  Excludes Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, which are reported separately.

^{[1].  Long-term debt securities have an original term-to-maturity of over one year.}

^{[2].  Asset-backed securities are backed by pools of assets, such as pools of residential home mortgages or credit card receivables, which give the security owners claims against the cash flows generated by the underlying assets.  Unlike most other debt securities, these securities generally repay both principal and interest on a regular basis, reducing the principal outstanding with each payment cycle.} 

SÃO PAULO –Today, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen met with Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan of Saudi Arabia on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in São Paulo, Brazil. Secretary Yellen discussed with the Minister the outlook for Saudi Arabia’s economy, the progress of its reform program, and its regional and global engagements. They emphasized their shared interest in working together effectively in both bilateral and multilateral settings. They reaffirmed the importance of working together to strengthen countering the financing of terrorism.

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SÃO PAULO –  U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen met with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea Choi Sangmok. Secretary Yellen congratulated him on his recent appointment as finance minister and welcomed the opportunity to continue to build strong ties between our two countries, including through a trilateral U.S., South Korea, Japan Finance Ministers meeting later this year.

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SÃO PAULO – Today, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen met with Turkish Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek and Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye Governor Fatih Karahan on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in São Paulo, Brazil. Secretary Yellen discussed with the Minister and the Governor the ongoing evolution of Turkish economic policy, including the mission to combat inflation. They stressed the enduring importance of the bilateral relationship and discussed how Türkiye and the U.S. can work together to address crucial regional issues, including strengthening anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regimes and sanctions enforcement. 

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As Prepared for Delivery

It is my pleasure to have my first meeting with Minister Caputo.

The Milei administration has inherited a steep stabilization task but has already taken some important steps toward restoring fiscal sustainability, adjusting the exchange rate, and combating inflation.

I commend Minister Caputo for his leadership throughout this period.

There is no doubt that this has been, and will continue to be, a difficult economic transition period for the Argentine people.

Protecting the most vulnerable during this transition will be a challenge, but is vitally important.

I see many areas for collaboration between the United States and Argentina on the topics being discussed in this year’s G20 Finance track, and I look forward to discussing these today with Minister Caputo.

I anticipate an active and constructive relationship between the U.S. Treasury Department and the Ministry of Economy.

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SÃO PAULO – Today, Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen met with Italy’s Minister of Economy and Finance Giancarlo Giorgetti on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in São Paulo, Brazil. During their meeting, Secretary Yellen and Minister Giorgetti exchanged views on priorities during Italy’s G7 presidency.  Secretary Yellen also discussed shared efforts to support Ukraine in its defense against Putin’s brutal invasion and deprive Russia of its ability to wage war.  Secretary Yellen congratulated Italy and the rest of the EU for the passage of the EU’s four-year €50 billion Ukraine Facility. Secretary Yellen reiterated the Administration’s ongoing efforts to secure direct budget support in FY 2024 as part of the national security supplemental request before Congress and underscored the importance of Congress acting on financial support for Ukraine as quickly as possible.  

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SÃO PAULO – Today, Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen met with Germany’s Minister of Finance Christian Lindner on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in São Paulo, Brazil. During their meeting, Secretary Yellen and Minister Lindner exchanged views on shared priorities, including our efforts to support Ukraine in its defense against Putin’s brutal invasion and deprive Russia of its ability to wage war. Secretary Yellen congratulated Germany and the rest of the EU for the passage of the EU’s four-year €50 billion Ukraine Facility.  Secretary Yellen reiterated the Administration’s ongoing efforts to secure direct budget support in FY 2024 as part of the national security supplemental request before Congress and underscored the importance of Congress acting on financial support for Ukraine as quickly as possible.

 

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