The U.S. net international investment position at yearend 2011 was –$4,030.3 billion (preliminary), as the value of foreign investment in the United States exceeded the value of U.S. investment abroad. At yearend 2010, the U.S. net international investment position was –$2,473.6 billion (revised).
Increases in the prices of U.S. Treasury bonds and declines in foreign stock prices raised the value of foreign investment in the United States and lowered the value of U.S. investment abroad.
The impact of changes in U.S. and foreign asset prices of –$802.1 billion accounted for over half of the –$1.6 trillion change in the U.S. net international investment position.
Most of the rest of the change in the U.S. net international investment position reflected foreign acquisitions of U.S. assets (including over $400 billion in U.S. Treasury securities) that exceeded U.S. acquisitions of foreign assets. U.S. acquisitions of foreign assets were reduced by an unusual decline in U.S. claims on foreigners as reported by U.S. banks and securities brokers.
The appreciation of the U.S. dollar against a trade-weighted index of major currencies caused a change of –$23.0 billion in the U.S. net international investment position.
The U.S. net international investment position was equal to 2.6 percent of the value of all U.S. financial assets at the end of 2011, up from 1.6 percent in 2010 and up from the recent peak of 2.3 percent in 2008.
To learn more about the U.S. international investment position read the full report.