As financial markets continued their recovery and economies began to reopen from COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns, managed futures were able to capture a small profit in May, gaining 0.04% according to the Barclay CTA Index, compiled by BarclayHedge, a division of Backstop Solutions. Year-to-date CTAs gained 1.44% through the end of May.

“Despite the coronavirus crisis and its economic impact, equity markets were buoyed by government stimulus efforts and the early stages of businesses resuming operations,” said Sol Waksman, president of BarclayHedge.

Most Barclay CTA Index sectors were in positive territory in May, led by the Cryptocurrency Traders Index which gained 3.70%. The Agricultural Traders Index was up 1.56%, the Discretionary Traders Index posted a 0.87% return, the Financial & Metals Traders Index gained 0.22% and the Currency Traders Index rose 0.17%.

“Many trend traders with longer time frames were caught out by the sharp rallies in equity and energy markets resulting in losses for funds in the Systematic and the Diversified sectors,” Waksman said.

Sectors losing ground in May included the MPI Barclay Elite Systematic Traders Index, down 0.63%, the Diversified Traders Index, off 0.31%, and the Systematic Traders Index, losing 0.25%.

The MPI Barclay Elite Systematic Traders Index was the lone sector in the red year-to-date through May, losing 4.28%.

Among the leading gainers on the year-to-date were the Cryptocurrency Traders Index, up 24.53%, the Currency Traders Index, gaining 5.33%, the Agricultural Traders Index, returning 5.24%, and the Systematic Traders Index, up 2.63%.

The Barclay BTOP50 Index, which tracks the performance of the largest CTAs that are still open for new investment, was down 0.34% in May. For the year-to-date the BTOP50 lost 2.20%.

For a complete table of Barclay CTA Index results as well as historical data, click here.

About Backstop Solutions

Backstop’s mission is to help the institutional investment industry use time to its fullest potential. We develop technology to simplify and streamline otherwise time-consuming tasks and processes, enabling our clients to quickly and easily access, share, and manage the knowledge that’s critical to their day-to-day business success. Backstop provides its industry-leading cloud-based productivity suite to investment consultants, pensions, funds of funds, family offices, endowments, foundations, private equity, hedge funds and real estate investment firms.

BarclayHedge, a division of Backstop, currently maintains data on more than 7,100 hedge funds, funds of funds and CTAs. The BarclayHedge Indices are utilized by institutional investors, brokerage firms and private banks worldwide as performance benchmarks for the hedge fund and managed futures industries.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Sol Waksman

BarclayHedge division of Backstop Solutions Group

(641) 472-3456