Foreign investment in Canadian securities totalled $7.7 billion in September, mainly acquisitions of money market instruments. At the same time, Canadian investment in foreign securities resumed to reach $10.6 billion, led by purchases of non-US instruments.

As a result, international transactions in securities generated a net outflow of funds of $2.9 billion from the Canadian economy in September. For the third quarter, portfolio investment generated a net inflow of funds in the economy of $2.4 billion, the lowest in nearly three years.

Foreign investment in Canadian securities increased to $7.7 billion in September, up from $2.6 billion in August. The investment activity in September mainly targeted the Canadian money market.

From January to September, foreign purchases of Canadian securities totalled $73.5 billion, compared with $144.6 billion for the same period in 2017. Foreign investors decreased their holdings of government bonds by $31.8 billion from January to September 2018, compared with total investments of $40.6 billion for the same period in 2017.