Japan increased its holding of U.S. Treasury securities in March, the same month it was hit by a devastating earthquake.

The Treasury Department says Japan, the second-largest foreign holder, boosted its holdings by $17.6 billion to $907.9 billion. There had been concerns that the March 11 earthquake and tsunami would lead Japan to scale back its purchases so it could use the money for reconstruction.

China, the largest foreign holder, cut its holdings by $9.2 billion to $1.14 trillion. It was the fifth straight month that China reduced its purchases of U.S. debt.

Total foreign holdings increased by $4.9 billion to $4.48 trillion. The government is expected to reach its $14.3 trillion borrowing limit on Monday but Treasury has said it will be able to continue regular debt auctions until August.