| Opalesque Industry Update - The Greenwich Global Hedge Fund Index was up again in January, posting a +2.66% gain to start the year. Performance was widespread as funds of all types took advantage of bullish sentiment across multiple asset classes and regions. Congress passed - and President Trump signed - the largest tax reform bill since the Reagan administration. Inflation remained in check, though the FOMC continued to indicate further interest rate hikes would be coming throughout the year. Long-only equities across the globe also jumped out of the gate. The S&P 500 Total Return Index was up +5.73%, and the MSCI Emerging Markets Price Index was up +8.30%. Conversely, the Barclays Aggregate Bond Index saw its worst month (-1.15%) since the significant bond selloff following President Trump's campaign victory in November 2016 and the fear that it would bring about the return of inflation.
Global Index Strategy Highlights
- January's preliminary performance data and December's final revision data represent the first time that all Greenwich Global Indices were positive in consecutive months since May and June 2014.
- Every major Group gained more than +1% in January. The Directional Trading Group was particularly strong, gaining +3.54% to post its best return in ten years. The Long-Short Equity Group's +3.61% was its highest return since April 2016.
- Funds indicating a regional bias were particularly impressive in January. The EM - Europe Index (+7.52%) and the EM - Americas Index (+6.76%) produced their highest returns since April 2015.
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