Markets
The Volatile History of Crude Oil Markets
Crude oil is the world’s most actively traded commodity, and oil-related trades are a staple for traders, hedgers, investors around the globe.
The below infographic, put together by Aspect, covers the history of crude oil trading, while also highlighting the major events that have shaped the landscape of the oil market as we know it today.
The History of Crude Oil
The infographic serves as the perfect primer for all the questions about oil that you had, yet were afraid to ask. It also illustrates the impact that unexpected geopolitical events can have on the oil price – and how this volatility can be contagious to other global markets.
Central Banks
Which Countries Hold the Most U.S. Debt?
Foreign investors hold $7.3 trillion of the national U.S. debt. These holdings declined 6% in 2022 amid a strong U.S. dollar and rising rates.

Which Countries Hold the Most U.S. Debt in 2022?
Today, America owes foreign investors of its national debt $7.3 trillion.
These are in the form of Treasury securities, some of the most liquid assets worldwide. Central banks use them for foreign exchange reserves and private investors flock to them during flights to safety thanks to their perceived low default risk.
Beyond these reasons, foreign investors may buy Treasuries as a store of value. They are often used as collateral during certain international trade transactions, or countries can use them to help manage exchange rate policy. For example, countries may buy Treasuries to protect their currency’s exchange rate from speculation.
In the above graphic, we show the foreign holders of the U.S. national debt using data from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Top Foreign Holders of U.S. Debt
With $1.1 trillion in Treasury holdings, Japan is the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt.
Japan surpassed China as the top holder in 2019 as China shed over $250 billion, or 30% of its holdings in four years.
This bond offloading by China is the one way the country can manage the yuan’s exchange rate. This is because if it sells dollars, it can buy the yuan when the currency falls. At the same time, China doesn’t solely use the dollar to manage its currency—it now uses a basket of currencies.
Here are the countries that hold the most U.S. debt:
Rank | Country | U.S. Treasury Holdings | Share of Total |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 🇯🇵 Japan | $1,076B | 14.7% |
2 | 🇨🇳 China | $867B | 11.9% |
3 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | $655B | 8.9% |
4 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | $354B | 4.8% |
5 | 🇱🇺 Luxembourg | $329B | 4.5% |
6 | 🇰🇾 Cayman Islands | $284B | 3.9% |
7 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | $270B | 3.7% |
8 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | $255B | 3.5% |
9 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | $226B | 3.1% |
10 | 🇮🇳 India | $224B | 3.1% |
11 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | $221B | 3.0% |
12 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | $217B | 3.0% |
13 | 🇨🇦 Canada | $215B | 2.9% |
14 | 🇫🇷 France | $189B | 2.6% |
15 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | $179B | 2.4% |
16 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | $120B | 1.6% |
17 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | $103B | 1.4% |
18 | 🇩🇪 Germany | $101B | 1.4% |
19 | 🇳🇴 Norway | $92B | 1.3% |
20 | 🇧🇲 Bermuda | $82B | 1.1% |
21 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $67B | 0.9% |
22 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | $59B | 0.8% |
23 | 🇦🇪 UAE | $59B | 0.8% |
24 | 🇦🇺 Australia | $57B | 0.8% |
25 | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | $49B | 0.7% |
26 | 🇵🇭 Philippines | $48B | 0.7% |
27 | 🇮🇱 Israel | $48B | 0.7% |
28 | 🇧🇸 Bahamas | $46B | 0.6% |
29 | 🇹🇭 Thailand | $46B | 0.6% |
30 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $42B | 0.6% |
31 | 🇮🇶 Iraq | $41B | 0.6% |
32 | 🇨🇴 Colombia | $40B | 0.5% |
33 | 🇮🇹 Italy | $39B | 0.5% |
34 | 🇵🇱 Poland | $38B | 0.5% |
35 | 🇪🇸 Spain | $37B | 0.5% |
36 | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | $37B | 0.5% |
37 | 🇨🇱 Chile | $34B | 0.5% |
38 | 🇵🇪 Peru | $32B | 0.4% |
All Other | $439B | 6.0% |
As the above table shows, the United Kingdom is the third highest holder, at over $655 billion in Treasuries. Across Europe, 13 countries are notable holders of these securities, the highest in any region, followed by Asia-Pacific at 11 different holders.
A handful of small nations own a surprising amount of U.S. debt. With a population of 70,000, the Cayman Islands own a towering amount of Treasury bonds to the tune of $284 billion. There are more hedge funds domiciled in the Cayman Islands per capita than any other nation worldwide.
In fact, the four smallest nations in the visualization above—Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Bahamas, and Luxembourg—have a combined population of just 1.2 million people, but own a staggering $741 billion in Treasuries.
Interest Rates and Treasury Market Dynamics
Over 2022, foreign demand for Treasuries sank 6% as higher interest rates and a strong U.S. dollar made owning these bonds less profitable.
This is because rising interest rates on U.S. debt makes the present value of their future income payments lower. Meanwhile, their prices also fall.
As the chart below shows, this drop in demand is a sharp reversal from 2018-2020, when demand jumped as interest rates hovered at historic lows. A similar trend took place in the decade after the 2008-09 financial crisis when U.S. debt holdings effectively tripled from $2 to $6 trillion.
Driving this trend was China’s rapid purchase of Treasuries, which ballooned from $100 billion in 2002 to a peak of $1.3 trillion in 2013. As the country’s exports and output expanded, it sold yuan and bought dollars to help alleviate exchange rate pressure on its currency.
Fast-forward to today, and global interest-rate uncertainty—which in turn can impact national currency valuations and therefore demand for Treasuries—continues to be a factor impacting the future direction of foreign U.S. debt holdings.
-
Datastream2 weeks ago
The Drive for a Fully Autonomous Car
-
Demographics4 days ago
Mapped: The World’s Happiest Countries in 2023
-
Misc4 weeks ago
Ranked: Biotoxins in Nature, by Lethal Dose
-
United States2 weeks ago
Mapped: The Largest 15 U.S. Cities by GDP
-
Economy2 days ago
Visualizing the Link Between Unemployment and Recessions
-
Markets4 weeks ago
Which Countries Have the Lowest Inflation?
-
China2 weeks ago
Vintage Viz: China’s Export Economy in the Early 20th Century
-
Stocks2 days ago
Visualizing 90 Years of Stock and Bond Portfolio Performance