TORONTO (Reuters) - Hedge funds added $13 billion of assets between the start of July and end of September, the first time the industry has generated net inflows in any quarter since 2018, data from industry tracker Hedge Fund Research (HFR) showed.
Total assets managed by the hedge fund industry rose to $3.31 trillion at end-September, with macro strategies receiving $7.2 billion and trend-following strategies gaining $3.2 billion, the data showed.
The HFRI 500 Fund Weighted Composite Index gained 3.6% in the third quarter, bringing year-to-date performance to 0.8%. The S&P 500 would have made gains of 5.57% over the same period.
"Institutions globally are making forward-looking allocations to hedge funds, anticipating and positioning for the near-term uncertainties of both the virus and the U.S. election," said Kenneth J. Heinz, President of HFR, said in the press release.
The hedge fund industry has come in for criticism for high fees and returns that have not matched those achieved by index trackers.
Hedge funds made 10.45% on average in 2019 compared to the S&P index tracker, which would have made 31.45% over the same period, the data showed.