Global long-short hedge funds, which are on course to post their worst monthly performance since May 2022, were forced to unwind bearish bets in both their long and short books in July, according to a report by Reuters.

The report cites data from Goldman Sachs' prime brokerage division as revealing that while the majority of losses were on the short side of portfolios, there was also a "material deterioration in the long side". 

The overall stock market rally, which tends to benefit long bets, means that hedge fund were still up 0.49% in July, but that performance trails the S&P 500 which index rose roughly 2% over the month.