(Opalesque) Global hedge fund flows were positive in July, with investors adding an estimated $5.85bn to funds around the world and bringing overall industry AUM to $3.307tn. According to July eVestment 2018 Hedge Fund Asset Flows Report, signs of consolidation continue: 42% of funds reporting to eVestment logged AUM inflows, while 58% had outflows.
eVestment said that this trend shows an acceleration of a consolidation trend that has been ongoing for some time: the prior 30-month average was 49% of funds with inflows and 51% with outflows. Equity hedge funds were the big winners in July, with inflows of +$7.51bn. This brings YTD inflows to +$9.85bn. Fixed-income/credit funds and commodities funds also saw positive flows last month, while multi-asset funds saw outflows of -$5.78bn in July. Multi-asset funds are now down -$12.60bn for the year.