China raises its holdings of U.S. Treasurys for first time in 8 months

China has strengthened its holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds to $970 billion for the first time in 8 months last July, according to U.S. Treasury data revealed on Friday.

China had reduced its holdings of U.S. debt for seven straight months, bringing its holdings below the trillion-dollar level last April, in conjunction with political tensions over issues including trade disputes and the Taiwan crisis.

However, Japan diminished its holdings of U.S. bonds to $1.234 trillion last July from $1.236 trillion the previous month. Accordingly, Japan remains the largest non-U.S. holder of Treasurys.

The foreign holdings of Treasurys rose to $7.501 trillion in July, from 7.430 trillion in June, the data showed.

The U.S. corporate bonds witnessed financial inflows of $8.78 billion, compared to $13.99 billion in June.