Foreigners Buying Lots of US Bonds

Foreigners purchased a record $1.6 trillion in US securities over the 12 months through December (chart). That's an impressive US net capital inflow that was generally bullish for the dollar last year and offset the Fed's QT paring of its bond portfolio.

Net foreign purchases of US bonds totaled a record $1.2 trillion last year as follows: Treasury notes & bonds ($927 billion), Government Agency bonds ($142 billion), and domestic corporate bonds ($147 billion) (chart).

Foreign private investors have been net sellers of US equities since the start of last year's bear market (chart). They tend to be contrary indicators, suggesting that the current bull market is safe since they are still selling though at a slower pace.