Kettera Strategies' September 2019 Heat Map
In the world of global macro markets, June 2025 presented a mixed picture for both discretionary and quantitative strategies. The Kettera Strategies report, released in June 2025, offers some insights into the performance trends and classification methodology, but does not delve into specific factors influencing the performance of these strategies.
Long-term trend following programs, which may include certain quant-driven strategies, generally showed higher returns in June 2025, although some posted negative results, indicating a mixed performance environment. It's worth noting that these returns are based on "style baskets," which are constructed from monthly net returns of programs reviewed or included on Kettera’s Hydra Platform, and reflect average performance per style, not investible indices.
Discretionary strategies in global macro had a good month, particularly those with short North American fixed income positions. Conversely, trend following strategies had a correction month, with many programs surrendering roughly one-fifth to one-quarter of their YTD returns.
Equities-based strategies, both long/short equities programs and market neutral strategies, varied greatly. Most were flat to positive, but the performance was far from uniform.
Currency specialists put in a generally uneventful month, as most exchange rates were choppy and sideways. Most agricultural commodities specialists had a good month, with many traders capitalising on long positions in soybeans and hogs, as well as seasonal corn spreads.
Macro programs with commodities exposure seemed to fare better than others. However, the leading source of losses across the board was fixed income, where traders' models found themselves on the wrong side of the bond retreat.
Quant macro strategies generally did not perform as well as discretionary strategies. A blend of BarclayHedge Equity Market Neutral Index and Eurekahedge Equity Mkt Neutral Index, and the EurekaHedge AI Hedge Fund Index, are examples of such strategies.
It's important to note that the CBOE Eurekahedge Relative Value Volatility Hedge Fund Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/MT5 Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Trend Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Quantitative Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Volatility Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Trend Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Diversified Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Mean Reversion Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Diversified Trend Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Systematic Diversified Volatility Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures CTA/Momentum Index, the Eurekahedge Managed Futures Strategy Index, the Societe Generale Short-term Traders Index, the S&P GSCI Metals & Energy Index, and the S&P GSCI Ag Commodities Index were not mentioned in the report as having significant performance in June 2025.
In conclusion, while June 2025 saw some improvement in trend following strategies, the report does not specify detailed factors driving discretionary or quant/model-driven macro program performance. It mainly contextualises style basket performance trends and clarifies the methodology behind Kettera’s analysis. For detailed factor analysis on macro program performance drivers such as market volatility, interest rates, geopolitical events, or liquidity conditions, those are not available in the referenced Kettera report excerpt.
Investing in technology can provide insights into the performance trends of quant macro strategies, as these strategies often incorporate advanced algorithms and data analysis to make decisions.
In the realm of finance, understanding the influence of technology on investing plays a crucial role, especially in the context of long-term trend following programs that may be quant-driven.
