World's Largest Hedge Fund Short Sells Semiconductor Giant ASML

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund led by Ray Dalio, known as the 'godfather of hedge funds,' has bet on short selling worth $5.7 billion (approximately 7.4 trillion KRW), predicting a decline in the stock prices of major European companies.

According to Bloomberg and others on the 16th (local time), Bridgewater disclosed short positions on 18 companies within Europe this month. Short selling is a trading method that profits by betting on a potential decline in stock prices. Bridgewater previously bet on short selling in the European stock market worth $14 billion and $22 billion respectively in Q1 2018 and March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Looking at the specific companies, there was a $1 billion short bet on ASML, a Dutch semiconductor equipment company, and a $752 million short bet on TotalEnergies, a French energy giant. Also included were France's BNP Paribas, Germany's Infineon and Bayer, Spain's Banco Bilbao, and Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo.

Bloomberg reported, "It is unclear whether this bet aims to secure pure profits from stock price declines or to employ a broad hedging strategy," adding that if small-scale short sales without disclosure obligations are included, the total short position size could be much larger.

Greg Jensen, Co-Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Bridgewater, did not make specific comments regarding short selling in an interview with Bloomberg TV but said, "We are seeing a massive movement of financial assets in Europe and the United States," and added, "Our positions are basically to protect us in this environment."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.