Foreign Investors Increase U.S. Corporate Bond Purchases at Record Pace in January

Foreign investors have been purchasing U.S. corporate bonds at the fastest rate in nearly three years, according to data from JPMorgan Chase. According to Jin10, the appeal of U.S. credit assets has been bolstered by stable yields and reduced hedging costs. JPMorgan strategists Nathaniel Rosenbaum and Silvi Mantri noted in a report that while buying activity slowed in the last week of January, with average daily net inflows dropping to $240 million—a 59% decrease from the previous week—the average daily net purchase for January still reached $332 million, marking the highest level since February 2023. Wall Street is closely monitoring whether the weakening dollar might trigger a broader withdrawal of foreign capital from U.S. assets. However, so far, foreign allocations to corporate bonds have remained resilient, indicating that the dollar's weakness has not yet led to significant capital shifts.