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Barclay CTA Index Gains 0.50% in March; All CTA Indices Show Positive Returns in 2015

Written by superadmin | Apr 22, 2015 12:00:00 AM

FAIRFIELD, Iowa, April 22, 2015 — Managed futures traders gained 0.50% in March according to the Barclay CTA Index compiled by BarclayHedge. The Index is up 3.47% year to date.

“Equity markets were mixed, commodities gave back the prior month’s gain, and interest rates turned lower after trending higher in February. But you wouldn’t know it based on CTA returns in March,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge.

All of Barclay’s eight CTA indices had gains in March. The Currency Traders Index was up 1.50%, Agricultural Traders gained 1.11%, Financial/Metals Traders were up 0.70%, and Systematic Traders added 0.51%.

“The US Dollar Index rose 3.20 percent in March, its ninth consecutive monthly gain, and continued to provide a favorable trading environment for currency funds,” says Waksman.

At the end of the first quarter, the Diversified Traders Index is up 3.91%, Systematic Traders have gained 3.53%, Financial/Metals Traders are up 3.46%, and Currency Traders have gained 3.03%.

The Barclay BTOP50 Index, which measures performance of the largest CTAs, gained 1.45% in March. The BTOP50 is up 4.92% through the end of March.

Click here to view 35 years of Barclay CTA Index data.

Sol Waksman is an experienced media source, providing perspectives on hedge fund and managed futures trends. For more commentary or background, call 641-472-3456 or email swaksman@barclayhedge.com.

BarclayHedge is the global leader in providing independent, research-based information services to the alternative investment industry. Founded in 1985, Barclay currently maintains data on more than 6,100 hedge funds, fund of funds, and CTAs. No one has been in the business of collecting alternative investment data longer than BarclayHedge.

Institutional investors, brokerage firms, and private banks worldwide utilize BarclayHedge indices as performance benchmarks for the hedge fund and managed futures industries.