The Daily
|
 In the news  Indicators  Releases by subject
 Special interest  Release schedule  Information

Canada's international transactions in securities, March 2017

Warning View the most recent version.

Archived Content

Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please "contact us" to request a format other than those available.

Released: 2017-05-18

Foreign investment in Canadian securities amounted to $15.1 billion in March, largely in Canadian corporate instruments. At the same time, Canadian investors added $15.4 billion of foreign securities to their holdings, led by acquisitions of US equities.

For the first quarter as a whole, foreign investment in Canadian securities exceeded Canadian investment in foreign securities by $28.8 billion, led by issuances of new Canadian shares to non-resident investors in February.

Chart 1  Chart 1: Canada's international transactions in securities, quarterly
Canada's international transactions in securities, quarterly

Foreign investment in Canadian securities focuses on corporate instruments

Foreign investors acquired $15.1 billion of Canadian securities in March, largely Canadian corporate instruments. Foreign acquisitions of Canadian securities reached $60.7 billion in the first quarter, up considerably from previous quarters.

Chart 2  Chart 2: Foreign investment in Canadian securities
Foreign investment in Canadian securities

Non-resident investors added $8.9 billion of Canadian bonds to their holdings in March. The investment activity was mainly in corporate bonds, as foreign investors reduced their exposure to government bonds. Foreign investment in private corporate bonds was $7.3 billion, mainly new issues denominated in US dollars. Meanwhile, foreign investors reduced their holdings of federal government bonds by $1.6 billion, a third consecutive monthly divestment. Canadian long-term interest rates were down by 12 basis points in the month.

Foreign investors added $2.9 billion of Canadian money market instruments to their holdings in March. Strong foreign acquisitions of corporate paper were moderated by a reduction in foreign holdings of provincial government paper. Foreign investors also acquired $1.4 billion of federal government paper in the month. Canadian short-term interest rates were up by seven basis points and the Canadian dollar edged down against its US counterpart in March.

Non-resident investors acquired $3.3 billion of Canadian equities in March, following a record high $35.9 billion investment in February. The investment in February was led by new issues of Canadian shares to non-resident investors resulting from cross-border mergers and acquisitions. In contrast, the investment in March mainly resulted from secondary market purchases. Overall, foreign acquisitions of Canadian equities in the first quarter totalled $38.2 billion. Canadian stock prices were up by 1.0% in the month and by 1.7% in the quarter.

Canadian investors buy US shares

Canadian investment in foreign securities reached $15.4 billion in March, the highest investment since December 2015. This activity was led by acquisitions of US equities. Canadian purchases of foreign securities reached $31.9 billion in the first quarter of the year.

Chart 3  Chart 3: Canadian investment in foreign securities
Canadian investment in foreign securities

Canadian investors acquired $16.1 billion of foreign equities in March. Record purchases of $20.2 billion of US equities were moderated by sales of non-US foreign equities in the month. US stock prices were virtually unchanged at the end of March.

Canadian investors reduced their holdings of foreign debt securities by $735 million in March. A record divestment of $2.5 billion in US corporate bonds was moderated by acquisitions of $1.3 billion in US Treasury instruments. US long-term interest rates were up by six basis points and short-term interest rates were up by 22 basis points in the month.


  Note to readers

The data series on international transactions in securities covers portfolio transactions in equity and investment fund shares, bonds and money market instruments for both Canadian and foreign issues. This activity excludes transactions in equity and debt instruments between affiliated enterprises, which are classified as foreign direct investment in the international accounts.

Equity and investment fund shares include common and preferred equities as well as units/shares of investment funds.

Debt securities include bonds and money market instruments.

Bonds have an original term to maturity of more than one year.

Money market instruments have an original term to maturity of one year or less.

Government of Canada paper includes Treasury bills and US-dollar Canada bills.

All values in this release are net transactions unless otherwise stated.

Next release

Data on Canada's international transactions in securities for April will be released on June 16.

Products

The Methodological Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (Catalogue number13-607-X) is available.

The User Guide: Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts (Catalogue number13-606-G) is also available. This publication will be regularly updated to maintain its relevance.

Contact information

For more information, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca).

To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Lauren Dong (613-668-3140; lauren.dong@canada.ca), International Accounts and Trade Division.

Report a problem on this page

Is something not working? Is there information outdated? Can't find what you're looking for?

Please contact us and let us know how we can help you.

Privacy notice

Date modified: