Macro Leads Hedge Fund Performance in August

Macro led the way amongst hedge fund strategies in August, helping the broader sector recover July losses, according to the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index, which rose 1.69% on the month with approximately 70% of funds making money.

The HFRI Macro (Total) Index was +4.11% in August, helping propel the sub-index to a strategy-leading +10.3% year-to-date. The surge in commodity prices helped commodity strategies drive much of the growth, the HFRI Macro: Commodity Index was +10.05% on the month, for +14.85% year-to-date. Elsewhere, there were good gains for all strategies with the exception of currency, the Currency Index was -0.33% for a sub-strategy worst -3.21% year-to-date.

There was little to tell between systematic and discretionary strategies, the HFRI Macro: Discretionary Directional Index rose 3.53% in August, while the Systematic Direction Index was up 3.26%. Year-to-date, however, the latter leads the way at +11.76% compared to +8.22%.

Still within Macro, the Active Trading Index was +4.47% (+7.56% year-to-date), while the Multi-Strategy Index was +3.38% ((+6.68%) and the Trend Following Index was +3.29% (+10.34%). While there are impressive year-to-date returns within the Macro set, the second-best performer thus far in 2026 is Systematic Diversified at +12.14%.

The bounce in crypto asset prices in August helped funds in that sector recover extensive year-to-date losses. The HFRI Cryptocurrency Index was a massive +19.41% in August, however this only drags year-to-date performance to +1.52%. Elsewhere, the Blockchain Composite Index also soared, by 18.99%, but again, it is only +1.06% year-to-date.

“Successfully navigating intense compounding macroeconomic risks, hedge funds posted strong gains in August led by Macro strategies,” says Kenneth Heinz, president of HFR. “While the outlook for equity and fixed income markets in H2 2026 has become less clear as a result of recent volatility, the outlook for hedge fund performance has improved, with funds demonstrating performance uncorrelated or negatively correlated to recent shocks to equity, fixed income and commodity markets.

“With the increased likelihood that these risks will persist or intensify in the coming months, strategic investor asset allocations to the most astutely positioned of managers will be critical to ensuring near and midterm investor returns,” he adds.