If I selected my cells, then ctrl-clicked on an empty cell (general format),
then the statusbar showed the sum in general format.

Maybe you could try it as a workaround.

Steve wrote:
>
> If I highlight several numbers in a column, Excel will indicate the
> sum. But it always shows that sum as a positive number, even if it's
> actually negative. Is there any way to change this behavior?

--

Dave Peterson