“Black box” hedge funds profit in volatile markets

Reuters
August 25, 2011

Hedge funds run by sophisticated computer programs are profiting from large falls in stock markets and a rocketing gold price this month, even as funds managed by human beings struggle to cope with high market volatility.

Insiders say so-called managed futures funds, which try to latch onto market trends, are making money from declining bond yields and falling equities, as investors seek safe havens amid the eurozone debt crisis and after the U.S.’s credit rating downgrade.

These “black box” funds are up 4.2 percent so far this month, according to Hedge Fund Research’s HFRX index, while the average hedge fund is down 4.0 percent and managers betting on rising and falling stock prices have lost a hefty 7.3 percent on average.

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This article was posted: Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 4:37 am

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