Indices and Reports

Tremont Capital Management released figures this week showing a $4.3 billion net outflow from hedge funds for the fourth quarter 2005. Despite the net effect, some positive components existed, with global macro and emerging markets investment strategies drawing substantial amounts of investment. Overall, the asset flow report showed that the global macro, emerging markets and dedicated short bias strategies saw inflows of $1.2 billion, $600 million and $30 million, respectively.

The rich keep getting richer, or so it seems for endowments.

Over the last decade, colleges and universities with over $1 billion in their endowments have earned an average of 12% per year, compared to those with under $25 million, which earned an average of 7.9%, according to a recent survey by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

A record number of hedge funds closed up shop in the first three-quarters of last year, but as 484 exited the market, more than three times as many opened their doors, according to Chicago based Hedge Fund Research.

Emerging market equity investment returns will see "a particularly sharp decline" in 2006, according to Mercer Investment Consulting's annual Fearless Forecast survey.

The survey, which polled 157 investment firms, predicts that emerging market investment returns will be approximately 9% this year, which is significantly lower that the 34% returns shown by the MSCI Emerging Markets Index in 2005.

Overall, the survey predicts that global equity markets will drop nearly 2% to a median 7.6% return in 2006 from 9.5% in 2005.