The Eurekahedge Hedge Fund Index rose 1.3 per cent in March, with 61 per cent of funds finishing the month positive, on the back of sharp reversals in the underlying markets.
The Eurekahedge Hedge Fund Index rose 1.3 per cent in March, with 61 per cent of funds finishing the month positive, on the back of sharp reversals in the underlying markets.
Redemptions eased further in March, amounting to USD7bn (net) or 0.5 per cent of the universe. This is based on the data of 30 per cent of the reporting funds.
In addition, 96 per cent of all reporting funds have outperformed the MSCI World Index (-12.5 per cent) over quarter one 2009.
All geographical investment mandates finished the month in positive territory, with Eastern Europe and Russia up 14.4 per cent on average. Eurekahedge says while this can be partly attributed to the sharp upturn in regional equities (MSIC Eastern Europe rose 19.1 per cent in March), it was a handful of funds with returns between 16 per cent and 38 per cent which positively skewed the average.
Their returns also positively impacted the broader Eurekahedge European Hedge Fund Index, which gained 2.3 per cent during the month.
Asian managers had a healthy month too, partly due to strongly rallying regional equities; the MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index rose 14.5 per cent in March.
Japanese managers, however, recorded relatively modest gains averaging 0.3 per cent, as a number of them failed to benefit from the sudden bounce in the domestic equity market.
North American and Latin American managers were up 1.4 per cent and one per cent respectively, with mixed returns across managers in both regions; on the whole, equity plays proved rewarding while commodity allocations resulted in losses, during the month.
Most strategic mandates, with the notable exception of CTAs, gave positive returns in March. CTAs were down two per cent on average, with the strategy recording the largest range of returns (-26 per cent to 34 per cent). Upward movement in the commodity market, despite some volatility, worked in favour of some managers, while the majority of them who were wrongly positioned, turned in losses.
On the other hand, fixed income and long/short equity managers had a strong month, both returning 2.5 per cent on average. While the latter made most of their gains from long positions in equities (MSCI World Index rose 7.2 per cent during the month, owing to action from policy makers and news of profitability across major banks), the former benefited from a decrease in government bond yields, among other things.
The Eurekahedge Relative Value Hedge Fund Index rose 4.3 per cent during the month, with equity-focused managers turning in impressive gains, thereby raising the strategy’s average return.
