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BullionVault – The Gold Price fell sharply against a strong US Dollar on Monday morning, falling through what one Asian dealer called "technical and psychological support at $942" to record the lowest Gold Fix so far this month at $937.50 an ounce.
Crude oil sank below $66 per barrel, while base metals and silver lost more than 3%.
Adding to Friday’s 0.7% loss despite news that France and Germany crept out of recession between April and July, world stock markets sank 1.4% early Monday on average – the biggest one-day loss in more than six weeks – after Japan reported 0.9% growth in its second-quarter GDP.
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – Swiss alternative investment company ALTIN AG has said it intends to maintain its share price by buying back between 5% and 10% of its own shares, its Board of Directors has also approved a capital reduction program. ALTIN’s hedge fund’s management performance was predictably negative (-29.20%) in 2008, yet considerably higher than key stock market indices.
2008 proved a particularly harsh year for the financial markets, compounded by additional difficulties specific to the hedge fund industry. The severe credit crisis often forced hedge funds to fire-sell positions.
In addition, the increased correlation between hedge funds and equity markets did not protect them against falling stock markets. In performance terms, the year 2008 has thus been negative for hedge funds and ALTIN proved no exception with a -29.20% fall in its net asset value. However, in light of the losses incurred by world stock markets over the same period, this result is acceptable and hedge funds remain the best performing asset class over the medium term.
Invested in approximately 40 hedge funds, the company has chosen to avoid illiquid strategies that have caused the closing of a number of hedge funds, ALTIN’s manager has been favouring liquidity since 2007.
Alex Akesson
Editor for HedgeCo.Net Email: alex@hedgeco.net
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New Zealand Herald – The modest recovery staged by world stock markets in recent weeks may mark the beginning of a new bull market for equities, one of the UK’s best-known hedge fund managers said yesterday.
Crispin Odey, the founder of Odey Asset Management, said that he had already bought heavily into banking stocks because he believed they were good value, but now also expected that there would be a recovery across a range of stock market sectors.
Reuters – Barack Obama takes over as U.S. president on Tuesday with hopes riding high he can conjure
up a rescue that will jolt the world’s biggest economy back to life and contain the financial crisis ravaging global markets.
The first African-American to become U.S. president will take his oath against the backdrop of plunging world stock markets, prospects of a drawn-out U.S. and global downturn, a trillion dollar federal deficit and fears of more crippling bank losses.
