Global investors are once again piling into American assets, lifting foreign holdings of United States securities to fresh highs and underscoring how central the country remains to the world’s financial plumbing. The headline figure of $9.35 trillion for foreign portfolio exposure to U.S. markets is not directly reported in official data and is therefore unverified based on available sources, but the direction of travel is clear: cross‑border claims on U.S. stocks, bonds, and direct investments have surged to record territory in dollar terms.
Behind that stampede is a mix of relative economic strength, the enduring pull of the dollar, and geopolitical jitters that keep pushing global cash toward what many investors still see as the safest large market. From the International Investment Position to Foreign Direct Investment flows, the latest numbers show the United States deepening its role as the world’s balance sheet, even as policymakers and traders debate how long that dominance can last.
How official data capture the foreign rush into U.S. assets
To understand the scale of foreign money flowing into the United States, I start with the broadest yardstick, the International Investment Position, which tracks the difference between what Americans own abroad and what the rest of the world owns in the country. The International Investment Position is compiled each Quarter and shows that U.S. liabilities in dollar terms have climbed sharply as global investors accumulate more American securities and direct stakes in U.S. businesses. In the First Quarter of 2025, for example, U.S. assets increased by $1.13 trillion while U.S. liabilities also rose, leaving the overall net position deeply negative but highlighting how attractive U.S. markets remain for foreign savers.
By the 3rd Quarter of 2025, the U.S. net International Investment Position had fallen to a revised negative level of -$26.16 trillion, according to official Quarter data. That figure reflects the cumulative effect of years of foreign buying of U.S. securities, real assets, and corporate stakes, and it has been reinforced by the Annual Update that tracks how valuation changes and new flows reshape the balance sheet. When I look at the First Quarter breakdown, where U.S. assets increased by $1.13 trillion, it is clear that rising liabilities are not a sign of weakness but of persistent global demand for dollar assets that outpaces Americans’ own overseas expansion.
What TIC and survey data reveal about portfolio holdings
Beyond the big balance sheet, the most granular window into foreign appetite for U.S. securities comes from the US Treasury International Capital system, known as The US Treasury International Capital, or TIC. Over the twelve months to November 2025, TIC data show that foreign investors accumulated a record amount of U.S. securities, a trend that has helped keep the dollar strong even as it occasionally pulls back from peaks, as highlighted in recent TIC commentary. These flows include heavy buying of Treasuries, corporate bonds, and equities, underscoring how global portfolios are still anchored in U.S. markets despite talk of diversification.
To measure the stock of those holdings, the Treasury relies on REPORTS that use a detailed survey of U.S. custodians and issuers to estimate U.S. liabilities to Foreign Residents from holdings of U.S. securities. The previous survey, conducted as of June 30, 2023, measured the value of total foreign holdings of U.S. securities at $26,872 billion, according to the official Portfolio Holdings documentation. A separate Preliminary Report on Foreign Holdings of U.S. Securities at End‑June 2023 confirms that survey‑based estimate of $26,872 billion, illustrating how the government triangulates custodial records and issuer reports to capture the foreign footprint in U.S. markets, as detailed in the survey results.
Dollar dominance and the changing mix of foreign exposure
Even as some countries experiment with alternative currencies, the dollar remains the backbone of global finance, and that status is central to the surge in foreign holdings of U.S. assets. A detailed note on the international role of the U.S. currency shows that foreign investors also hold substantial amounts of U.S. dollar assets in the form of reserves, bank deposits, and securities, with official institutions managing portfolios that run into the hundreds of billions, as illustrated in one Figure. That same research highlights how Gold reserves, shown in another Figure, still play a role in central bank portfolios, but the Note makes clear that the dollar’s share of international assets remains dominant even as some diversification occurs at the margin.
Investment banks have described this environment as The Dollar Shifting Landscape, moving From Dominance to Diversification, yet their own analysis concedes that Dollar Dominance Driven by U.S. economic exceptionalism has persisted from 2014 to 2024. In practice, that means foreign central banks, sovereign funds, and private investors continue to treat U.S. Treasuries and blue‑chip equities as core holdings, even while they add small allocations to other currencies and assets, a pattern captured in the Shifting Landscape research. The result is that any pullback in the dollar tends to be shallow and temporary, because structural demand for dollar assets, from trade invoicing to reserve management, keeps drawing capital back into U.S. markets.
From FDI surges to sharp drops, the real‑economy side of the story
Portfolio flows are only part of the picture, since Foreign Direct Investment in the United States, or FDI, channels long term capital into factories, offices, and research labs. According to one detailed review, Foreign Direct Investment in the United States, Preliminary 2nd Quarter 2025 data show that Foreign investors have continued to commit new funds to U.S. projects, even as some sectors face cyclical headwinds, as summarized in the Preliminary analysis. A separate report on Foreign Direct Investment in the United States, covering 2022 to 2025, notes that FDIUS totaled $102 billion over that span, underscoring how Foreign capital has remained a key driver of U.S. job creation and technology transfer, according to the $102 estimate.
At the project level, At Camoin Associates, FDI specialists track announcements that show how this capital translates into real‑world investments. Their latest U.S. FDI trends report notes that 546 FDI projects were announced, with some states attracting 72 and 19 projects respectively, illustrating how foreign companies are spreading their bets across multiple regions, as detailed in the FDI projects breakdown. Yet the picture is not uniformly rosy: one broadcast report points out that foreign investment in the US took a steep hit in early 2025, dropping to its lowest level in over a year as global conditions tightened, a warning captured in the sharp drop coverage.
Risk appetite, tariffs, and what the next Quarter could bring
Foreign investors are not just buying safe assets, they are also shifting into riskier corners of the U.S. market. One widely cited data point shows that Foreign investors now hold about 30% of their US assets in equities, near record highs and well above the 19% long term average, according to a recent Foreign allocation. That tilt toward stocks amplifies the sensitivity of global portfolios to U.S. policy shocks, as seen when Traders were jolted after President Donald Trump threatened new tariffs on imports from China, sparking a sell off in risky assets including crypto, an episode recounted in detail in the tariff reaction. When the White House signals a tougher stance on trade, the immediate effect is often a rush into Treasuries and the dollar, followed by a reassessment of equity and corporate bond exposure.
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Grant Mercer covers market dynamics, business trends, and the economic forces driving growth across industries. His analysis connects macro movements with real-world implications for investors, entrepreneurs, and professionals. Through his work at The Daily Overview, Grant helps readers understand how markets function and where opportunities may emerge.
