A classic "corner". These were very common in the 19th century and the 1st three decades of the 20th. (ie before large scale regulation).
It's interesting that this kind of thing was common before the 1930s. I got the impression that short-selling only started being widely used in the '50s When did short-selling begin? I read that some of the people involved in this were making complaints to the German regulators about what had happened? I think they alleged that Porsche had covertly built up a stake in VW using options rather than buying shares, which they would have had to declare. Does anyone think that the short-sellers have a point here, or are they just looking for a chance to pass the blame? Sam
Short selling is as old as the hills, but many of the famous 19th century corners were in commodities, ie future contracts. Corners often went wrong btw, it is a very risky strategy requiring very deep pockets It is silly to ban short sellers as they are the only forced buyers in the market. A large short position is usually very bullish unless of course there is a complete bankruptcy
