Hedge funds continued to pare short positions in U.S. crude oil last week even as the previous short-covering rally ran out of steam. The unusual concentration of hedge fund short positions built up between June and August has been partially unwound, reducing some of the persistent selling pressure evident in the market during the third quarter. Speculators are not yet ready to bet heavily on a rebound in prices but the bearishness that dominated the market over the summer is dissipating. Hedge funds and other money managers reduced their gross short position in the main NYMEX U.S. crude futures and options contract by 14.5 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 15 ( link.reuters.com/her65w ). Hedge funds have reduced their gross short position for five consecutive weeks by a total of more than 52 million barrels, […]