Hedge funds gained 0.45 per cent in June, according to the Barclay Hedge Fund Index compiled by BarclayHedge.
Hedge funds gained 0.45 per cent in June, according to the Barclay Hedge Fund Index compiled by BarclayHedge.
‘After four profitable months in a row, hedge funds have now gained 11.00 per cent since the beginning of the year,’ says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge. ‘It’s the best start since 1999 when the Barclay Hedge Fund Index gained 15.94 per cent in the first six months.’
Overall, 13 of Barclay’s 18 hedge fund indices gained ground in June. The Barclay Convertible Arbitrage Index was up 3.57 per cent, healthcare and biotechnology gained 2.77 per cent, Pacific Rim equities rose 2.21 per cent, merger arbitrage was up 1.47 per cent, and the Multi-Strategy Index gained 1.43 per cent.
The Equity Short Bias Index, which led all strategies in 2008 with a 40.91 per cent gain, lost 1.73 per cent in June, and is down 6.26 per cent year-to-date.
‘Through month-end in June, 77.6 per cent of the hedge funds and 86.8 per cent of the funds of funds that have reported to us are showing a profit for June,’ says Waksman.
The Barclay Fund of Funds Index gained 0.38 per cent in June, and is up 4.44 per cent in 2009.
After just six months in 2009, several hedge fund strategies have made strong recoveries from their 2008 losses. Convertible arbitrage has gained 25.48 per cent after losing 27.66 per cent in 2008. Healthcare and biotechnology is up 15.42 per cent following a 15.03 per cent decline. And multi strategy has gained13.29 per cent, coming back from a 17.96 per cent loss in 2008.
‘Many of the funds in these top-performing strategies are earning incentive fees again. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if this trend continues for the remainder of 2009,’ says Waksman.
