Foreign holdings of US Debt hit a record high in April, the US Treasury has announced. It also announced that China increased its holdings after two straight months of trimming.

This rise marked the fourth consecutive monthly increase in foreign holdings, rising to 0.4%. The rise has been attributed to investors being wary of the EU Debt Crisis, seeing US debt as a safe investment which is relatively protected from EU contagion.

The news that China is buying again came as a relief to the Treasury. The largest owner of US debt decreased its holdings in the Treasury in February and March, but added $1.5bn in April. Whilst Chinese holdings of US debt is still lower than the record high it held in 2011, its current holding is $1.1455trn.