such as the distressed Eurozone economies and makes their recovery more difficult. Some believe that shorting is a very useful way of mitigating against losses, and indeed most institutional pension funds will short to improve returns to their pension holders. Others believe there has to be control over shorting which can easily be subject to market abuse and be detrimental to business and the economy. In August 2011 France, Italy, Spain and Belgium banned short-selling of the shares in their banks and other financial companies. Often people who hold shares don’t know they’re being lent for shorting. Shorting is, in effect, praying for catastrophe.
52