Zenith head of alternatives research Rodney Sebire said that "managed futures produced a disappointing year in terms of net returns" with the average returns for managed futures for the 12-month period sitting at -3.2 per cent.
Mr Sebire said the global macro peer group had likewise not delivered sunstantial returns, but noted it was "stronger" at 3.5 per cent for the same year.
"Both peer groups struggled to extract meaningful returns from traditional asset classes. In particular, equity markets provided a challenging environment with periodic bouts of euphoria, offset by episodes of extreme risk aversion,” said Mr Sebire.
“While global equity markets were down approximately 5.7 per cent for the 12 month period, the return pattern was volatile and heavily sentiment driven.”
Additionally, the company said that while managed futures have enjoyed a “tailwind to returns” from the secular bull market in bonds, the main driver of returns within the sector has actually been “trend following techniques”.
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