FAIRFIELD, Iowa, August 15, 2012 – Hedge funds gained 0.85% in July, according to the Barclay Hedge Fund Index compiled by BarclayHedge. The Index is up 3.19% year to date.
“Equity markets see-sawed in July, driven up and down by economic reports in the most recent news cycle,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge.
“Poor economic data drove markets down, and hopes of action by governments and central banks rallied the markets. It was a very difficult trading environment for many strategies.”
In July, 17 of Barclay’s 18 hedge fund indices had positive returns. The Barclay Equity Short Bias Index rebounded with a 3.16% gain, Global Macro added 1.56%, the Event Driven Index gained 1.54%, Distressed Securities were up 1.41%, and the Multi Strategy Index rose 1.12%.
“When the dust settled at month’s end, prices for equities, bonds and commodities were mostly higher,” says Waksman.
The only losing hedge fund strategy in July was the Pacific Rim Equities Index, which slid 0.04%.
Year to date, the Healthcare & Biotechnology Index leads all hedge fund strategies with a 9.14% gain. Convertible Arbitrage is up 6.06%, and Fixed Income Arbitrage has gained 5.25%.
Equity Short Bias is the only hedge fund strategy with a loss in 2012. At the end of July, Equity Short Bias was down 7.33% for the year.
The Barclay Fund of Funds Index gained 0.67% in July, and is up 1.66% in 2012.
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Sol Waksman is an experienced media source, providing perspectives on hedge fund and managed futures trends. For more commentary or background, call 641-472-3456 or email swaksman@barclayhedge.com.
BarclayHedge was founded in 1985 and actively tracks more than 6,200 hedge funds, funds of hedge funds, and managed futures programs. Each month Barclay provides updated performance rankings for 38 Hedge Fund categories, 16 CTA categories, and 7 UCITS categories.
Institutional investors, brokerage firms, and private banks worldwide utilize BarclayHedge indices as performance benchmarks for the hedge fund and managed futures industries.