Foreign investors purchased C$7.9 billion in Canadian securities in May 2026, a steep decline from C$46.9 billion in April and well below the consensus forecast of C$15.21 billion. Non-resident investors sold C$16.1 billion in Canadian equities, the largest monthly divestment since February 2025. The selloff was concentrated in the energy and mining sector (C$7.7 billion) and the manufacturing sector (C$4.9 billion).
Despite the sizable equity outflows, foreign investors remained net buyers of Canadian securities for a fifth consecutive month, supported by strong demand for fixed-income instruments. Purchases included C$7.8 billion in federal government bonds and C$7.1 billion in provincial government bonds.
Foreign holdings of Canadian money market instruments also rose by C$6.0 billion, the largest increase since September 2025, driven mainly by acquisitions of private corporate paper (C$3.7 billion) and paper issued by federal government business enterprises (C$2.8 billion).
