Barclay CTA Index Down 1.11% in June; Trend Reversals Hit Managed Futures Returns

FAIRFIELD, Iowa, July 18, 2013 — Managed futures lost 1.11% in June according to the Barclay CTA Index compiled by BarclayHedge. The Index is now down 0.87% year to date.

“A slowing of economic growth in China combined with concerns of Fed tapering led to trend reversals in equities, commodities, and interest rates in June,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge.

Seven of Barclay’s eight CTA indices had negative returns in June. The Diversified Traders Index lost 1.62%, Systematic Traders gave up 1.22%, and Financial & Metal Traders were down 1.10%.

“Sixty-two percent of the CTAs that have reported a June return are in the loss column for the month,” says Waksman.

The Barclay BTOP50 Index, which measures performance of the largest CTAs, lost 1.53% in June.

The only managed futures strategy with gains in June was the Currency Traders Index which rose 0.22%.

At the end of the first two quarters in 2013, three CTA indices have positive returns, while five are in negative territory for the year. The Barclay Currency Traders Index is up 1.74% after six months, and Financial & Metal Traders have gained 0.13%. The BTOP50 Index has added 0.46% year to date.

The Diversified Traders Index has lost 1.08% through June, Discretionary Traders are down 0.49%, Agricultural Traders have lost 0.32%, and the Systematic Traders Index is down 0.24%.

Click here to view 33 years of Barclay CTA Index data.

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.