Currency speculators increased their net bets in favour of the US dollar in the latest week and boosted net euro shorts to a fourth straight record as doubts persist about the region's debt crisis, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission released on Friday.
The value of the dollar's net long position rose to $18.77 billion in the week ended January 17, from $17.43 billion the previous week. Net euro shorts rose to 160,030 contracts, a fourth straight week at a record high. The euro zone sovereign debt crisis has roiled global markets for more than two years, with Greece now closing in on an initial deal with private bond holders to prevent it from tumbling into a chaotic default.
Earlier this month the single currency hit a 17-month low against the US dollar. 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 IMM speculators in the yen, euro, British pound, Swiss franc, Canadian and Australian dollars.
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