China has bought the most Japanese longer-term bonds and notes since at least 2005, according to official Japanese data, raising speculation it might be taking a more strategic approach to investing in JGBs.
Japanese balance of payments figures show that in April China bought a net Y1,330bn ($16.7bn) of bonds with maturities of more than a year. That compares with March’s net purchases of Y234.5bn, the previous record, and marks the seventh consecutive month of buying.
The longer-term buying in April was countered with the larger net sale of Y1,470bn in money market instruments – short-dated bills of a year or less – in the sixth successive month of sales.