Russia has lost its appetite for U.S. debt, paring down its holdings by 50 percent from March to April–a cut that represents a total of $96.1 billion to $48.7 billion. As it currently stands, the national debt, which includes intragovernmental holdings has swelled to over $21 trillion.
Related: Russia ETFs: Value or Value Trap?
“We need all the help we can get in the search for buyers of US Treasuries due to the enormous supply coming our way in the next few years,” said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Advisory Group. “Our stance on trade with our trading partners could very well play into this in coming months and quarters, especially with China, the largest owner of US Treasuries.”
China and the U.S. have been engaging in a tariff-for-tariff battle with the U.S. placing a 25 percent tariff on $50 billion of Chinese goods last Friday with the possibility of an additional round of tariffs worth $16 billion pending approval. In turn, China countered with a 25 percent tariff on $34 billion of U.S. goods.
Related: Trade Wars Drag Dow Down 200 Points at Open
Consequently, China holds the largest owner of U.S. debt and reduced its level by $5.8 billion in April to $1.18 trillion. Coming in second is Japan, which cut its holdings by $12.3 billion to $1.03 trillion. Other countries, such as Ireland, the United Kingdom and Switzerland have also reduced their exposure to U.S. debt.
With the capital outflux from U.S. debt by a spate of countries, the iShares Short Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ: SHV) is worth considering as a possible play, especially if further compounded by a lengthy trade war between the U.S. and other economic superpowers. SHV is up 0.56% year-to-date, up 1.06% within the past year and up 0.54% in the last three years.
For more news affecting fixed-income ETFs, click here.