The long / short report August 2026

The long / short report provides a geographic analysis of the long/short market by sector, using S&P Global Market Intelligence's securities finance short interest data.

Highlights from the August’s report include:

Global Equities

Short interest declined across every sector during the month, although Commercial and Professional Services remained the most heavily shorted sector overall. The sharpest declines were recorded in Consumer Services (-46bps), Transport (-28bps), Healthcare (-20bps), and Utilities (-15bps), while Semiconductors (1bps), Materials (-2bps), and Media & Entertainment (-3bps) experienced the most modest changes.

US Equities

The average short interest across US equities fell to 87bps during the month as Commercial and Professional Services regained its position as the most shorted sector.  The largest increases in short interest were seen across Media and Entertainment (+9bps), Household and Personal Products (+4bps) and Semiconductor and Semiconductor Equipment (+3bps).  The largest decreases were seen across Telecoms (-16bps), Consumer Services (-15bps) and Real Estate (-12bps).

APAC Equities

Average short interest across APAC equities increased to 80 basis points during the month. The largest gains were recorded in Materials (+29bps), Commercial and Professional Services (+24bps), and Software (+10bps), while the sharpest declines were seen in Household and Personal Products (-27bps), Automobiles and Compo nents (-23bps), and Transport (-19bps).

 EMEA Equities

Average short interest across EMEA equities declined to 10 basis points during the month, with most sectors recording lower levels of activity. The only sectors to post increases were Consumer Durables (+3bps), Insurance (+2bps), and Commercial and Professional Services (+1bps). The largest declines were observed in Consumer Services (-5bps), Materials (-1bps), and Healthcare (-1bps).

 Fixed Income

Utilization increased by 40bps across the government bond markets and by 14bps across corporate bonds.

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