Hedge funds slipped 1.94 per cent in March, erasing gains of 1.84 per cent in February, according to the Greenwich Global Hedge Fund Index.

By comparison, the S&P 500, MSCI World Equity, and FTSE 100 indices were down 0.43 per cent, 1.25 per cent and 3.10 per cent respectively. So far in 2008 the GGHFI has lost 2.92 per cent and fewer than a third of constituent funds ended the month with gains.

These figures confirmed trends reported in WealthBriefing earlier: the Credit Suisse/Tremont Hedge Fund Index posted negative returns of 2.11 per cent in the month.

RBC Capital Markets said its RBC Hedge 250 Index of hedge fund returns fell into the red in March, showing a return of minus 2.51 per cent, bringing the year-to-date return to minus 3.43 per cent.

The Hennessee Hedge Fund Index, another industry benchmark, declined by 2.02 per cent, according to Hennessee Group, a hedge fund and research company based in the US.