Currency speculators reversed sentiment and bet against the US dollar for the first time since the period ending September 6, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission released on Friday and Reuters calculations. The value of the dollar's net short position posted at $10.62 billion in the week ended December 6, from a long position of $18.04 billion the previous week.
Net euro shorts totalled 95,814 contracts, a drop from the 104,302 contracts in the previous week. The data does not reflect positioning after the European Central Bank cut its benchmark interest rate this week nor the latest proposals to increase European Union and euro zone fiscal unity.
That trading will only be reflected in the data to be collated to end of trading December 13 and released December 16. To be short a currency is to bet it will decline in value, while being long is a view its value will rise. The Reuters calculation for the aggregate US dollar position is derived from net positions of International Monetary Market speculators in the yen, euro, British pound, Swiss franc, Canadian and Australian dollars.