WASHINGTON - China continued to increase its holdings of US Treasury securities in August, and remained as the largest holder of US treasuries.

China raised its US treasuries holdings by $34.5 billion in August, with the total holding up to $1.2005 trillion, the latest data from the US Treasury Department showed on Tuesday.

Japan, which overtook China as the largest holder of US treasuries last October, cut its holdings by $11.4 billion to $1.1017 trillion in August.

By the end of August, overall foreign holdings of US Treasury securities rose to $6.2697 trillion from July's $6.2503 trillion.

China's forex reserves rose for the eighth month in a row in September as pressure from capital outflow eased.

In January, China's forex reserves plunged below $3 trillion, but as the economy stands on a firmer footing and the Chinese currency, yuan, continues to stabilize, the stockpile has increased steadily since February.

The Chinese economy is expected to continue its steady growth for the rest of this year, Zhou Xiaochuan, China's central bank governor, has said. He expected the economy to grow 7 percent in the second half of this year.