Canada's August Securities Transactions Swing to Outflow as International Investors Sell Federal Debt

08:58 AM EDT, 10/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Canada recorded a net outflow of CA$41.2 billion in international securities transactions in August, reversing the cumulative net inflow of $123.8 billion seen over the first seven months of the year, according to the country's statistical agency on Friday. The outflow was driven by a record CA$17.5 billion divestment in Canadian federal government debt by international investors, made up of CA$11.2 billion in bonds and CA$6.3 billion in money market instruments, wrote Statistics Canada in a statement. This reversed a cumulative CA$99.4 billion in international investment in these securities from January to July, added StatsCan. Canadian investors bought CA$23.9 billion in international securities, mainly US equities, while reducing their holdings of US federal government bonds. International investors' retreat from Canadian securities was partly offset by CA$7.6 billion in purchases of Canadian corporate bonds and CA$1.6 billion in provincial government bonds.