Hedge funds have mounted the biggest bet against Italian government bonds since the global financial crisis amid mounting concerns over Rome’s political unrest and the country’s reliance on Russian gas imports.
According to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, the total value of Italian bonds borrowed by investors to bet on a price decline reached the highest level since January 2008 this month, at more than €39 billion.
Investors’ rush to bet against Italy comes as the country faces increasing economic headwinds from the surge in European natural gas prices due to cuts to Russia’s supply and a fraught political environment with elections looming in September.
