Nov
3
November 3, 2008 | 1 Comment
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Zug, Switzerland: Gardner Finance AG (Gardner) has announced the availability to their Mezzanine Finance Program which provides access to the Structured Finance carve-out of the GEMI Fund Ltd., tracking the broader Gardner Energy MacroIndexR (GEMIR).
The GEMI Fund Ltd Structure Finance portfolio includes primary reserve-based mezzanine debt investments into oil & gas exploration & production companies in North America while diversification is achieved through selective investments into the renewable energy sector, mining, pipelines, midstream and energy service companies. Many of these companies are not directly exposed to the price of the underlying commodities providing investors with both attractive yields and the potential for growth over time.
Read more here
finance, fund, gardner, hedge
Nov
3
November 3, 2008 | Leave a Comment
So, is the nightmare over now? Does the activity in the market mean that the “bulls are back” and a strong rebound is inevitable? Not so fast. Interestingly, buyers reemerged in a big way during a week when consumer confidence plunged to its lowest level ever recorded and the GDP suffered its worst showing since 2001. Try not to read too much into these moves (just like we try not to panic when the Dow plunges 10% in a day either). The economy is weak; the markets are fragile; and a new president will soon be in charge. Still, weeks like this sure beat the alternative.
Attached/linked please find And That’s The Week That Was, the Brounes & Associates market/economic commentary for the week ended October 31, 2008.
Coming up in this week: Construction Spending (Monday), ISM - Manu (Monday), Factory Order (Tuesday), ISM - Services (Wednesday), Unemployment Rate (Friday), Non-Farm Payroll Addition (Friday)
economy, funds, gdp, hedge
Oct
24
October 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Good news all around, right? The housing sector appears to be rebounding as existing home sales experienced its best showing in five years. Apple, Amazon.com, Microsoft each announced better than expected quarterly earnings. Leading economic indicators implied future domestic strength. China’s growth rate hit a whopping nine percent in the third quarter. Institutions are starting to participate in the bailout plans by accepting government investments. And yet, the nervousness continues on a global scale. In reality, earnings season has brought some challenges as future outlooks put dampers on any positive numbers. The credit markets show signs of thawing, though not as quickly as some would like. Greenspan and others have been forced to relive their mistakes as politicos seem more preoccupied on placing blame than finding solutions (must be an election year). And the equity indexes tumbled again as excessive volatility continued. (Are those 40% year-to-date declines for real?) Yep, another ho hum week in the markets.
Attached/linked please find And That’s The Week That Was, the Brounes &Associates market/economic commentary for the week ended October 24, 2008.
This week: New Home Sales (Monday), Consumer Confidence (Tuesday), Durable Goods Orders (Wednesday), Fed Policy Meeting Statement (Wednesday), GDP - 3rd quarter (Thursday)
credit, funds, greenspan, hedge, markets, volatility
Oct
20
October 20, 2008 | Leave a Comment
This is the latest from EDHEC Alternative Indexes. We can’t imagine this is too much of a surprise given the turmoil in the markets lately.
See the Index here
EDHEC, fund, funds, hedge, index
Oct
20
October 20, 2008 | Leave a Comment
When did investors last breathe a sigh of relief for a 127 down day (on the Dow)? Well, after a few weeks of sheer and utter panic, they will take the slight (since when are low triple digits considered sight?) negative day and head to the weekend to regroup. More government intervention seemed to bring about a bit of calm that ended an eight day horrendous losing streak for stocks. Fear and uncertainty remain as does excessive volatility. But the sheer panic seemed to have subsided (at least, for the weekend). Earnings and economic releases will most likely be weak for the foreseeable future, but investors may be accepting that the global governments will act in coordinate ways to manage the crises. The major indexes rose this week; the credit markets are thawing out. Still, investors have a long way to go before engaging in any celebrations. For now, a slight sigh of relief will have to do.
Attached/linked please find And That’s The Week That Was, the Brounes & Associates market/economic commentary for the week ended October 17, 2008.
Coming up this week: Leading Economic Indicators (Monday), Existing Home Sales (Friday)
bailout, crash, panic, stocks
Oct
16
October 16, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Chosen from among nearly 100 applicants for the inaugural class of the programme, seventeen doctoral students from fourteen countries will begin their coursework on
EDHEC Business School’s Nice campus this week.
The EDHEC PhD in Finance prepares doctoral students for academic careers in top institutions and for the highest responsibilities in the finance industry; during the three years of the programme, PhD candidates will acquire the knowledge and the tools to conduct research that will lead to veritable innovation in finance.
Check out more here
EDHEC, finance, phd
Oct
14
October 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment
EDHEC and EuroPerformance have released their annual rankings of the top UK asset management companies: the Alpha League Table. The Alpha League Table is constructed on the basis of a genuine measure of alpha, using a state-of-the-art methodology developed by EDHEC. The year’s results are better than last year’s: average alpha increased (approximately 30 basis points) to 2.9% and the average frequency of alpha is 52.2%; whereas it was 46.3% last year. The winner of the 2008 edition is Jupiter, which was ranked second last year. With its average alpha of 4.23% and the frequency with which alpha is delivered coming to 73.75%, the firm posts an impressive performance.
Read more here.
EDHEC, indexes, management companies, UK
Oct
14
October 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Gardner Finance AG (Gardner) has recently released the August 2008 performances of its Family of commodity hedge fund indexes; the Gardner MacroIndexR Family. The Indexes are based on the performance of various underlying hedge fund strategies and provide a proxy for hedge fund performance across the space.
Read more here.
commodity, finance, fund, gardner, hedge, indexes
Oct
14
October 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment
What the heck is going on? Blink and you miss a 100 point move down. Blink again and the market moves another 300 points (most likely lower). With sheer and total panic out there, investors pushed the global markets significantly lower this week and didn’t really need much of a reason. Sure earnings season kicked off, but everyone already knew they would be weak. Sure the credit crisis has elevated, but the Central Bankers are making coordinated efforts to stem the pessimism (to no avail). Sure redemptions are causing some forced sales, but aren’t any bottom fishers ready to emerge based on market fundamentals? A herd mentality can be a powerful thing and the Dow and other indexes (including global ones) suffered through what may be considered the worst week in market history. Many investors have sold on sheer panic; others have reallocated to restructure portfolios more in line with goals and tolerance for risk. Still others (especially those who will not need the funds for years) nervously watch, sit on their hand, and try not to cave to the capitulation. The last hour of Friday’s trading was a roller coaster in the truest sense. Hopefully, calmer heads will prevail over the weekend and some semblance of normalcy (or, at least, less chaos) will prevail.
Attached/linked please find And That’s The Week That Was, the Brounes & Associates market/economic commentary for the week ended October 10, 2008.
Coming up this Week: PPI (Wednesday), Retail Sales (Wednesday), Fed Beige Book (Wednesday), CPI (Thursday), Industrial Production (Thursday), Housing Starts (Friday) Fed Policy Meeting Minutes (Tuesday), Trade Balance (Friday)
crash, dow, jones, panic, volatility
Oct
7
October 7, 2008 | Leave a Comment
HedgeCo Networks LLC announced the launch of the next generation online analytical and reporting tool, the Hedge Fund Calculator. Available as a monthly or annual subscription service, the Hedge Fund Calculator was designed for hedge funds and funds of hedge funds, and facilitates the rapid computation of quantitative statistics, net performance numbers and the creation of branded marketing materials.
Read More Here
calculator, hedge funds, hedgeco
