The latest HFM Hedge Fund Performance Report finds that hedge funds retreated 0.4 per cent in April, dragging year-to-date returns further into the red at -0.6 per cent.
The firm writes that April was a challenging month for the financial markets as the combination of the escalating Russia-Ukraine war, lockdowns in China and the increasingly hawkish Federal Reserve spurred stagflation worries.
Key highlights from the report:
- HFM’s Global Composite Index was down -0.4 per cent in April and -0.6 per cent year-to-date, while the HFM FoHF Composite Index declined -2.6 per cent year-to-date. .
- Billion-dollar club funds outperformed smaller funds for a fourth consecutive month, extending their lead over smaller funds in 2022 to 2.8 per cent.
- L/S equity and event-driven funds were the biggest drags on the month, down 2.8 per cent and 3.0 per cent, respectively. Conversely, managed futures and macro funds were up 3.2 per cent and 1.3 per cent, respectively, the only top-level strategies that posted positive returns in April.
- North America was the poorest performing region in April but has nevertheless managed to outperform US stocks by a significant margin.
- Fixed income/credit posted a negative return for the fourth time in 2022, the worst run among top-level strategies.
- Arbitrage/RV funds had the narrowest dispersion over the past 12 months. Around 80 per cent of funds returned between 9 per cent and -5 per cent.
