Hedge funds head south for winter

Hedge funds in January had their worst performing month in more than five years, according to the latest data from Greenwich (Conn.) Alternative Investments LLC. The Greenwich Global Hedge Fund index declined by 2.4% in January marking another sign of global market turmoil, Margaret Gilbert, managing director, pointed out in a statement. Despite the poor performance for hedge funds, Ms. Gilbert pointed out that the alternative strategies held their own against most broad market indexes. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 6% in January, and 79% of hedge funds in the Greenwhich database outperformed the S&P and 33% of hedge funds finished the month in positive territory. “The downside protection is particularly apparent over the last 12 months with hedge funds returning 7.1% or out-performance of 9.5% over the S&P 500, which fell 2.3% over the period,” she said. Dedicated short-sellers had the strongest month, with a 7% gain in January. The worst performing category was emerging markets, which lost 6.2% for the month.