Long and short of it

The Northern Rock rollercoaster is putting hedge funds in a spin. Its share capital has traded nearly four times since it sought emergency funding from the Bank of England last month. The violent swings in Northern Rock’s shares have been a joy ride for some but sick-making for others. The shares started off favouring the funds like GLG which have taken short positions in Northern Rock. The stock has been rewarding short sellers since peaking at 1251p in February. But the winnings only started ...