The flash estimate for the Barclay CTA Index, compiled by BarclayHedge, indicates a 0.23% gain in April. Year to date, the Index is down 1.42%.

“New US sanctions targeting Russian oligarchs pushed aluminum prices to six-year highs, while crude oil prices rose to their highest level in four years after threats of US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal stoked fears of increasing Mideast instability,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge.

The Currency Traders Index gained 0.71% in April, Discretionary Traders were up 0.63%, Diversified Traders added 0.24%, and the Systematic Traders Index rose 0.07%.

“In spite of a profitable outcome for the month, it wasn’t all smooth sailing,” says Waksman.

“April’s turbulence in the grain complex was highlighted by mid-month price reversals, which created a challenging environment for momentum traders.

Bullish positions in the British pound were profitable until mid-month, but once prices started to decline it quickly turned into a rout.”

The Financials and Metals Traders Index lost 0.34% in April, and Agricultural Traders gave up 0.15%.

After four months in 2018, the Discretionary Traders Index has gained 2.93%, Agricultural Traders are up 1.96%, and Currency Traders have gained 1.43%.

The Diversified Traders Index is down 1.80% year to date, Systematic Traders have lost 1.90%, and Financials/Metals Traders are down 1.46%.

The new Cryptocurrency Traders Index created by BarclayHedge jumped 44.04% in April, following a 30.62% drop in March. After starting the year with three months of losses, this volatile index is down 19.81% for the year.

The BTOP50 Index, which is composed of the largest CTAs open to new investment, gained 0.34% in April, but has lost 1.53% year to date through May 15, 2018.

Click here to view 37 years of Barclay CTA Index data.