The U.S. market has dipped 3% while ETF short interest rose 3%. The sectors facing the heaviest selling pressure are attracting the most short selling.

Short interest increases are generally modest, except for XLF. Short positions in the financial sector have nearly doubled.

Crude Oil is the primary outlier. While other sectors see shorts rise as prices fall, Oil’s price and short % of float have both nearly doubled.

Financial ETF shorts double, Oil defies the correlation. S3 maps the sector‑level dislocations.

The performance trajectory for US-based ETFs since the outbreak of hostilities is markedly divergent. While broader U.S. indices are down 3%, aggregate short interest has climbed 3% across sector ETFs.

A clear correlation is emerging within our short interest analytics: sectors experiencing the steepest price declines are seeing the highest concentrations of short selling.

Outside of specific outliers, the increase in short positions for most ETFs remains relatively modest.

The notable exception is the XLF (Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund), which has seen a large increase in short interest. Short exposure in this sector has nearly doubled, signaling a shift in positioning data.

In international markets, ETF short interest has gone down on average.

The underlying correlation persists, but the short interest changes are mostly negative.

However, none of these sectors exhibit the volatile price action seen in crude oil. While the price of Oil has nearly doubled, short interest has surged in USO in tandem.

The broader short market is shifting, but it remains quiet compared to USO.

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The information herein (some of which has been obtained from third party sources without verification) is believed by S3 Partners, LLC (“S3 Partners”) to be reliable and accurate. Neither S3 Partners nor any of its affiliates makes any representation as to the accuracy or completeness of the information herein or accepts liability arising from its use. Prior to making any decisions based on the information herein, you should determine, without reliance upon S3 Partners, the economic risks, and merits, as well as the legal, tax, accounting, and investment consequences, of such decisions.