Read the following texts and table with financial data from an S&P 500 earnings report carefully.Based on the question-answer history (if provided), answer the last question. The answer may require mathematical calculation based on the data provided.


liquidity and capital resources we maintained a strong financial position throughout 2018 and as of 30 september 2018 our consolidated balance sheet included cash and cash items of $ 2791.3 . we continue to have consistent access to commercial paper markets , and cash flows from operating and financing activities are expected to meet liquidity needs for the foreseeable future . as of 30 september 2018 , we had $ 995.1 of foreign cash and cash items compared to a total amount of cash and cash items of $ 2791.3 . as a result of the tax act , we currently do not expect that a significant portion of the earnings of our foreign subsidiaries and affiliates will be subject to u.s . income tax upon subsequent repatriation to the united states . depending on the country in which the subsidiaries and affiliates reside , the repatriation of these earnings may be subject to foreign withholding and other taxes . however , since we have significant current investment plans outside the u.s. , it is our intent to permanently reinvest the majority of our foreign cash and cash items that would be subject to additional taxes outside the u.s . refer to note 22 , income taxes , for additional information . our cash flows from operating , investing , and financing activities from continuing operations , as reflected in the consolidated statements of cash flows , are summarized in the following table: . <table class='wikitable'><tr><td>1</td><td>cash provided by ( used for )</td><td>2018</td><td>2017</td><td>2016</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>operating activities</td><td>$ 2554.7</td><td>$ 2534.1</td><td>$ 2258.8</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>investing activities</td><td>-1649.1 ( 1649.1 )</td><td>-1417.7 ( 1417.7 )</td><td>-864.8 ( 864.8 )</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>financing activities</td><td>-1359.8 ( 1359.8 )</td><td>-2040.9 ( 2040.9 )</td><td>-860.2 ( 860.2 )</td></tr></table> operating activities for the year ended 2018 , cash provided by operating activities was $ 2554.7 . income from continuing operations of $ 1455.6 was adjusted for items including depreciation and amortization , deferred income taxes , impacts from the tax act , undistributed earnings of unconsolidated affiliates , share-based compensation , and noncurrent capital lease receivables . other adjustments of $ 131.6 include a $ 54.9 net impact from the remeasurement of intercompany transactions . the related hedging instruments that eliminate the earnings impact are included as a working capital adjustment in other receivables or payables and accrued liabilities . in addition , other adjustments were impacted by cash received from the early termination of a cross currency swap of $ 54.4 , as well as the excess of pension expense over pension contributions of $ 23.5 . the working capital accounts were a use of cash of $ 265.4 , primarily driven by payables and accrued liabilities , inventories , and trade receivables , partially offset by other receivables . the use of cash in payables and accrued liabilities of $ 277.7 includes a decrease in customer advances of $ 145.7 primarily related to sale of equipment activity and $ 67.1 for maturities of forward exchange contracts that hedged foreign currency exposures . the use of cash in inventories primarily resulted from the purchase of helium molecules . in addition , inventories reflect the noncash impact of our change in accounting for u.s . inventories from lifo to fifo . the source of cash from other receivables of $ 123.6 was primarily due to the maturities of forward exchange contracts that hedged foreign currency exposures for the year ended 2017 , cash provided by operating activities was $ 2534.1 . income from continuing operations of $ 1134.4 included a goodwill and intangible asset impairment charge of $ 162.1 , an equity method investment impairment charge of $ 79.5 , and a write-down of long-lived assets associated with restructuring of $ 69.2 . refer to note 5 , cost reduction and asset actions ; note 8 , summarized financial information of equity affiliates ; note 10 , goodwill ; and note 11 , intangible assets , of the consolidated financial statements for additional information on these charges . other adjustments of $ 165.4 included changes in uncertain tax positions and the fair value of foreign exchange contracts that hedge intercompany loans as well as pension contributions and expense . the working capital accounts were a source of cash of $ 48.0 that were primarily driven by payables and accrued liabilities and other receivables , partially offset by other working capital and trade receivables . the increase in payables and accrued liabilities of $ 163.8 was primarily due to timing differences related to payables and accrued liabilities and an increase in customer advances of $ 52.8 primarily related to sale of equipment activity . the source of cash from other receivables of $ 124.7 was primarily due to the maturities of forward exchange contracts that hedged foreign currency exposures . other working capital was a use of cash of $ 154.0 , primarily driven by payments for income taxes . trade receivables was a use of cash of $ 73.6 which is primarily due to timing differences. .
Question: what was the difference in cash provided by operating activities and the cash used for investing activities in 2018?

905.6