The "meme stock" boom has left short sellers losing $2.50 billion

July has been a brutal month for traders who are bearish on risky US stocks. By Thursday, investors had lost $2.50 billion on the 50 stocks with the highest short positions in the US, according to data from S3 Partners. These companies, including "meme stocks" representing Kohl's Commodity Corp., and the average loss on shorting these targets is four times the average short loss on the US stock market as a whole. As retail investors' enthusiasm for speculative stocks has grown, many highly short stocks have been strongly pulled up, and bears have come under pressure. While key events such as this week's tariff deadline, the Federal Reserve's decision and non-farm payrolls pose a major test of risk appetite, strategists generally agree that there is still room for the "meme stock" boom to continue. Retail net purchases of "meme stocks" such as Opendoor and Krispy Kreme have continued to rise and trading activity levels have accelerated, according to Vanda Research.