China's Treasury Pile Is Shrinking on Paper. The Custody Data Tell a Different Story

American News Group News Commentary - China held $590.7 billion of U.S. Treasury securities at the end of August, down from $699.7 billion a year earlier, according to U.S. Treasury data released Friday. Fortune called it the lowest level in 18 years, and for anyone watching de-dollarization, the trend looks clear. But over the same year, holdings attributed to Belgium and Canada kept climbing, and a former Treasury official who follows the data says some of China's bonds may simply be sitting i