The Barclay Hedge Fund Index rose 0.90 percent in June, as hedge funds notched their 12th straight month of gains. According to Barclay data, hedge funds have advanced 14.4 percent since July of 2006.
“As an asset class, hedge funds continue to be a profitable alternative for investors,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of The Barclay Group. “The Barclay Hedge Fund Index has gained 71.50 percent over the past five years, with a compound annual return of 11.39 percent per year,”.
“Equity markets in the U.S. and many other developed economies experienced price declines during the month, however hedge funds devoted to equity strategies were still able to make a profit in June,” says Waksman.
The Barclay Emerging Markets Index has gained 12.90 percent in the first six months of 2006, followed by Equity Long Bias at 9.96 percent, Merger Arbitrage at 9.36 percent, Distressed Securities at 8.57 percent, and European Equities at 8.38 percent.
The only sector with a significant drop in June was the Event Driven Index, down 0.77 percent.