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Hedge Funds Up 0.55% in February; Emerging Market Funds Gain 8.39% YTD

FAIRFIELD, Iowa, March 6, 2006 - Hedge funds gained 0.55% in February, according to the Barclay Hedge Fund Index.

"February hedge fund returns were impacted by crosscurrents in several hedge fund sectors, reducing returns for many and creating losses for some," says Sol Waksman, founder and president of The Barclay Group.

"Long/short equity funds trading Japanese equities faced a difficult trading environment as large-cap equities outperformed small-caps. The TOPIX Small Cap Index lost 6.6% for the month while the more broadly-based TOPIX lost 2.9%."

Barclay's Emerging Markets Index continued its strong performance, up 2.10% in February and 8.39% during the first two months of 2006. Emerging Markets led Barclay's 18 hedge fund indexes in 2005 with a gain of 21.35%.

"Emerging Market funds, though profitable, also had significant challenges to overcome," says Waksman.

"Equity markets in Eastern Europe, India, China and Venezuela were strong in February. But Argentina, Brazil and Mexico in Latin America, and Korea, Indonesia, and Thailand in the Pacific Rim were down for the month."

Overall, 14 of Barclay's 18 hedge fund indexes showed gains in February. The European Equities Index gained 1.84%, Convertible Arbitrage was up 1.55%, Healthcare and Biotechnology gained 1.49%, and the Technology Index was up 1.15%. The Pacific Rim Index had the largest decline, down 1.99% in February.

Click here to view nine years of Barclay Hedge Fund Index data.

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

The Barclay Group, founded in 1985, actively tracks more than 5,200 hedge funds and managed futures programs. Barclay has created and regularly updates 18 proprietary hedge fund indexes and eight managed futures indexes. Institutional investors, brokerage firms and private banks worldwide utilize Barclay's indexes as performance benchmarks for the hedge fund and managed futures industries.