Hedge funds have dramatically scaled back their footprint in the US stock market as sharp swings have pummelled big money managers.
Funds that trade with some of the largest banks on Wall Street including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase have rapidly cut long and short stock positions, or bets on prices rising or falling, according to interviews with traders and data that the banks have circulated to their clients.
The moves accompany the worst sell-off in the $46tn US stock market since it was rocked by the coronavirus pandemic two years ago. The benchmark S&P 500 index has fallen 11 per cent this year as investors react to surging inflation, tighter monetary policy from the Federal Reserve and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has helped to drive up commodity prices and thrown global growth forecasts into doubt.