The U.S. Department of the Treasury released the "Monthly Treasury International Capital (TIC) Data for [Year] [Month]".

Key Chapter Title List

1. Treasury International Capital (TIC) January Data Overview
2. About TIC Data
3. Net Foreign Purchases of Long-Term Securities (Breakdown by Security Type and Investor Category)
4. Net Purchases of Long-Term Foreign Securities by U.S. Residents
5. Changes in Foreign Holdings of Dollar-Denominated Short-Term U.S. Securities and Other Custodial Liabilities
6. Changes in Banks' Own Net Dollar Liabilities
7. Summary of Monthly Net Dollar Portfolio Flows (Including Private and Official Breakdown)

Document Introduction

This report is based on the monthly data for January 2024 from the U.S. Treasury International Capital (TIC) system, released by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on March 19, 2025. TIC data is a key official indicator for tracking international capital flows, assessing foreign demand for U.S. securities, and analyzing trends in global dollar asset allocation. The report focuses on the net trading activities between foreign investors and U.S. residents during January 2024 regarding long-term securities, short-term dollar instruments, and cross-border bank liabilities.

The data shows that in January 2024, the aggregate of all foreign net purchases of U.S. long-term securities, short-term U.S. securities, and banking flows resulted in a net TIC outflow of $48.8 billion. This overall outflow consisted of a net foreign private capital outflow of $74.8 billion and a net foreign official capital inflow of $26.0 billion. Specifically for long-term securities, foreign residents slightly increased their holdings of U.S. long-term securities in January, with a net purchase of $0.2 billion. However, this overall marginal net increase masks significant divergence: foreign private investors made net purchases of $59.2 billion, while foreign official institutions made net sales of $59.0 billion.

Meanwhile, U.S. residents increased their holdings of long-term foreign securities, with net purchases reaching $45.4 billion. After incorporating adjustments such as stock swaps, the estimated overall net foreign sales of U.S. long-term securities in January 2024 were $45.2 billion. Regarding short-term instruments, foreign residents increased their holdings of U.S. Treasury bills by $32.3 billion, and their total holdings of all dollar-denominated short-term U.S. securities and other custodial liabilities increased by $53.9 billion. Conversely, banks' own net dollar liabilities to foreign residents decreased by $57.5 billion.

The report explicitly states that TIC data collection is primarily based on custodial data, which may lead to biases in identifying the nationality of the ultimate security holders. For example, U.S. Treasury securities held through custodial accounts in third countries, or those managed by foreign private portfolio managers on behalf of residents of other countries, may not be accurately attributed in the data. Furthermore, TIC data does not cover all dollar assets held by foreigners. Therefore, the report emphasizes the need for caution when using this data to draw precise conclusions about changes in holdings of U.S. financial assets by specific countries.

This data provides policymakers, financial market analysts, and international relations researchers with a quantitative basis for assessing trends in cross-border capital flows, the attractiveness of dollar assets, and changes in official reserve management behavior. For professionals concerned with global financial stability, the international role of the dollar, and capital account interactions among major economies, this report is an indispensable primary source.