International transactions in securities generated a net inflow in funds of $58.3 billion to the Canadian economy over April, the largest inflow since October 2025, said the country's statistical agency on Tuesday.
This was a result of international investors acquiring $46.9 billion of Canadian securities in April, led by a record investment in federal government bonds, said Statistics Canada in a statement. Meanwhile, Canadian investors sold $11.4 billion of international securities, following five consecutive monthly investments totalling $70.3 billion, it added.
StatsCan noted non-resident investors acquired an "unprecedented" $38.5 billion of Canadian government bonds in April. International investment in federal government bonds reached a record $27.7 billion, for a total of $47.8 billion so far in 2026. While United States investors were the main contributors to the investment activity in federal bonds in April, increased purchases from Asian and European investors also contributed.
In addition, StatsCan noted, international investors acquired $10.6 billion of provincial government bonds in April, their largest investment since January 2025. In April 2026, they also added $10.2 billion of corporate bonds to their holdings, led by instruments issued by financial institutions.
StatsCan said Canadian investors reduced their exposure to foreign securities by $11.4 billion in April, the first divestment since October 2025. The reduction was in both bonds and shares.
Canadian divestment in international bonds amounted to $8.4 billion in April and targeted non-U.S. foreign bonds (-$5.9 billion) and U.S. government bonds (-$3.0 billion), it added.
Finally, StatsCan noted Canadian investors decreased their holdings of foreign equity securities by $3.0 billion in April. Despite the growth in US share prices, as measured by the S&P 500 composite index, investors sold $1.6 billion of US shares, mainly shares of large capitalization technology firms. Similarly, they divested $1.4 billion in non-US shares, mainly European shares.