Citi analysts said in their equity markets positioning model note Tuesday that the January bullish trends stalled as we reached February.
Analysts told investors that the bullish build of longs on US equities throughout most of January slowed, and the S&P and Nasdaq positioning is now slightly less extended.
The flows have caused positioning to dip towards neutral as investors take profits on some long positions, according to Citi. Analysts stated that ETFs also ended the week with net outflows.
"Similarly, Eurostoxx extended long positioning is slowing fading," they wrote. "The recent bullish turn to China futures flows was also short-lived and the past week saw net positioning only fractionally less bearish."
"China’s historic equity short positions built up over the past 2 months has been unwinding," added analysts. "However, the sharp turn in flows has lost momentum and the slight drift towards neutral was primarily driven by unwinding of positions, indicating a move by investors to de-lever market exposure."