It will definitely increase volatility. Wait til some good news comes out and we get to fade the futures. The rallies will go much farther because no shorting into it and the declines will go much deeper because no short covering into it. This is a futures trader's dream come true
<cite> Hopefully regulators learned a lesson today about short selling bans </cite><p>Could you be a little more specific, are speaking about the regulators in Pakistan or the USSA, or both?
Basic economic theory predicts the following consequences of no short-selling:
1) less liquidity
2) less accurate prices
3) more volatility
These 3 factors all contribute to lower participation by end-users i.e. less companies issuing stock, less people investing in stocks. This is turn raises the cost of capital, which in turn reduces employment, business investment, and national prosperity.