Chinese ambivalence toward Treasuries?

A 4.3% decrease in indeed news, but this has happened before on several occasions, only to see a healthy appetite from China the following month.

TOKYO—Japanese financial institutions helped drive the purchasing that made Japan the world's top holder of U.S. Treasuries in December, but the trends that drove its banks and others to buy may not last.

U.S. Treasury estimates Tuesday showed Japan overcame China as the No. 1 foreign holder of U.S. sovereign debt for that month. China's sharp paring of its own holdings from the month before, by $34.2 billion to $755.4 billion, made up a large part of the switch.