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Hedge Funds Ramp Up Bearish Bets Amid Strong U.S. Jobs Report
Jan 13, 2025

Hedge Funds Ramp Up Bearish Bets Amid Strong U.S. Jobs Report

Global hedge funds have significantly increased their short positions against U.S. stocks in the past week leading up to January 9, with insights detailed in a recent Reuters article. This comes in anticipation of a substantial U.S. jobs report, which subsequently triggered a broader sell-off on Wall Street. According to data from the IndexBox platform, the new employment figures were particularly robust, with the U.S. Labor Department's report showing job growth rising to 256,000 in December, the highest since March, and the unemployment rate dropping to 4.1%.

The market reaction to these stronger-than-expected employment news was swift, with the S&P 500 index falling by 1.54% on Friday, effectively wiping out all its gains for 2025. Morgan Stanley noted that hedge fund managers ramped up their shorts, particularly in sectors like staples, software, financials, and healthcare, while scaling back on long positions in communication services. Despite this bearish sentiment in the U.S., there was continued interest in European and Asian equities.

Goldman Sachs observed a similar trend, highlighting that the shift towards short positions was most pronounced in North America and Europe. Jon Caplis, CEO of PivotalPath, linked this strategy to current uncertainties surrounding the Federal Reserve's outlook on interest rates and critical data releases, such as the upcoming consumer price index.

While most sectors faced increased bearish sentiment, the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) sector bucked the trend, with hedge funds adding to these positions at the fastest rate in three months, as reported by Goldman Sachs. Nevertheless, technology stocks saw significant declines on Friday, dropping 2.23%, following financials and real estate. Analysts are closely watching upcoming earnings reports from major tech companies starting after Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 20.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform

  1. 1. INTRODUCTION

    Making Data-Driven Decisions to Grow Your Business

    1. REPORT DESCRIPTION
    2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND THE AI PLATFORM
    3. DATA-DRIVEN DECISIONS FOR YOUR BUSINESS
    4. GLOSSARY AND SPECIFIC TERMS

  2. 2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    A Quick Overview of Market Performance

    1. KEY FINDINGS
    2. MARKET TRENDSThis Chapter is Available Only for the Professional EditionPRO

  3. 3. MARKET OVERVIEW

    Understanding the Current State of The Market and its Prospects

    1. MARKET SIZE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. MARKET STRUCTURE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    3. TRADE BALANCE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    4. PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    5. MARKET FORECAST TO 2035

  4. 4. MOST PROMISING PRODUCTS FOR DIVERSIFICATION

    Finding New Products to Diversify Your Business

    1. TOP PRODUCTS TO DIVERSIFY YOUR BUSINESS
    2. BEST-SELLING PRODUCTS
    3. MOST CONSUMED PRODUCTS
    4. MOST TRADED PRODUCTS
    5. MOST PROFITABLE PRODUCTS FOR EXPORTS

  5. 5. MOST PROMISING SUPPLYING COUNTRIES

    Choosing the Best Countries to Establish Your Sustainable Supply Chain

    1. TOP COUNTRIES TO SOURCE YOUR PRODUCT
    2. TOP PRODUCING COUNTRIES
    3. TOP EXPORTING COUNTRIES
    4. LOW-COST EXPORTING COUNTRIES

  6. 6. MOST PROMISING OVERSEAS MARKETS

    Choosing the Best Countries to Boost Your Export

    1. TOP OVERSEAS MARKETS FOR EXPORTING YOUR PRODUCT
    2. TOP CONSUMING MARKETS
    3. UNSATURATED MARKETS
    4. TOP IMPORTING MARKETS
    5. MOST PROFITABLE MARKETS

  7. 7. PRODUCTION

    The Latest Trends and Insights into The Industry

    1. PRODUCTION VOLUME AND VALUE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)

  8. 8. IMPORTS

    The Largest Import Supplying Countries

    1. IMPORTS: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. IMPORTS BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024)
    3. IMPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024)

  9. 9. EXPORTS

    The Largest Destinations for Exports

    1. EXPORTS: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. EXPORTS BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024)
    3. EXPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024)

  10. 10. PROFILES OF MAJOR PRODUCERS

    The Largest Producers on The Market and Their Profiles

  11. LIST OF TABLES

    1. Key Findings In 2024
    2. Market Volume, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    3. Market Value: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    4. Per Capita Consumption: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    5. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    6. Imports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    7. Import Prices, By Country, 2012–2024
    8. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    9. Exports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    10. Export Prices, By Country, 2012–2024

  12. LIST OF FIGURES

    1. Market Volume, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    2. Market Value: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    3. Market Structure – Domestic Supply vs. Imports, in Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    4. Market Structure – Domestic Supply vs. Imports, in Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    5. Trade Balance, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    6. Trade Balance, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    7. Per Capita Consumption: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    8. Market Volume Forecast to 2035
    9. Market Value Forecast to 2035
    10. Market Size and Growth, By Product
    11. Average Per Capita Consumption, By Product
    12. Exports and Growth, By Product
    13. Export Prices and Growth, By Product
    14. Production Volume and Growth
    15. Exports and Growth
    16. Export Prices and Growth
    17. Market Size and Growth
    18. Per Capita Consumption
    19. Imports and Growth
    20. Import Prices
    21. Production, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    22. Production, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    23. Imports, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    24. Imports, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    25. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    26. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    27. Imports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    28. Import Prices, By Country, 2012–2024
    29. Exports, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    30. Exports, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    31. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    32. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    33. Exports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    34. Export Prices, By Country, 2012–2024

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