Scotia Capital Canadian Hedge Fund Index gains ground in November

Date: Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Author: Scotia Capital

The Scotia Capital Canadian Hedge Fund Performance Index finished November 2008 up 1.65 per cent on an asset weighted basis and down 2.73 per cent on an equal weighted basis.

The index outperformed both the TSX Composite and the S&P 500 index on both an asset weighted basis and equal weighted basis.

November saw a continuation of the negative market movements of September and October.

Global commodity prices fell broadly with oil leading the way as demand levels continued to fall.

Although North American markets failed to rise on the optimism surrounding the US election, a late-month rally followed assurances that President-elect Obama will implement an effective economic plan upon entering office.

Credit spreads continued to widen and the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the US recession officially began last December.

In the midst of these challenging market conditions, Canadian hedge fund managers performed well relative to global indices by shifting into more defensive positions to better withstand volatile market conditions.

The aim of the Scotia Capital Canadian Hedge Fund Performance Index is to provide a comprehensive overview of the Canadian Hedge Fund universe.

To achieve this, index returns are calculated using both an equal weighting and an asset-based weighting of the funds.

The index includes both open and closed funds with minimum assets under management of CAD15m and at least a 12 month track record of returns, managed by Canadian-domiciled hedge fund managers.