Bridgewater Takes Short Bet Against Europe to $14 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- The world’s biggest hedge fund isn’t done betting against European equities.

Bridgewater Associates LP now has wagers valued at more than $14 billion that stocks will decline in the region after it disclosed a $1 billion short bet against Munich-based engineering firm Siemens AG. The value of the firm’s short bets in Europe has more than quadrupled this month and also includes a wager against the German sportswear manufacturer Adidas AG.

Bridgewater has been building positions against Italian companies including Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, Enel SpA and Eni SpA ahead of national elections in March. That vote is unlikely to produce a clear winner, hindering the country’s ability to produce economic reforms. The firm is also betting against energy, manufacturing and construction firms in Europe.

Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio warned at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month that the dollar’s recent weakness is adding stimulation to an already stimulated global market. The next economic downturn is unlikely to happen soon, Dalio wrote in a LinkedIn post on Monday without mentioning a region.

Dalio’s firm disclosed the size of the short position against Adidas on Feb. 9, according to a filing. The position represents about 1.76 million shares.

Short sellers offload borrowed shares and buy them back at a lower price, pocketing the difference as profit.

To contact the reporters on this story: Brandon Kochkodin in New York at bkochkodin@bloomberg.net, Suzy Waite in London at swaite8@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Neil Callanan at ncallanan@bloomberg.net, Ambereen Choudhury

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