Managed Futures On Barclay CTA Index Gained 0.72% In January

Managed futures gained 0.72 percent in January, according to estimates from the Barclay CTA Index. "The rise in U.S. interest rates helped fuel a rally in the USD against European, Japanese, and Canadian currencies," says Sol Waksman, the founder and

By None February 15, 2007 12:00 AM GMT

Managed futures gained 0.72 percent in January, according to estimates from the Barclay CTA Index.

“The rise in U.S. interest rates helped fuel a rally in the USD against European, Japanese, and Canadian currencies,” says Sol Waksman, the founder and president of The Barclay Group. “Rallies in gold and natural gas prices also helped many traders to achieve a profitable month. Agricultural markets were more difficult as prices for corn and soybeans dropped at the beginning of the month only to rally back at month-end.”

All eight of Barclay’s CTA indices gained ground in January. The Financial and Metals Index was up 0.91 percent, Systemic Traders gained 0.71 percent, the Diversified Traders Index was up 0.68 percent, while Discretionary Traders rose 0.49 percent.

The Barclay BTOP50 Index, which monitors performance of the largest CTAs, gained 0.60 percent in January.