We knew that July and August were tough. But just how tough for hedge funds? The Hennessee Hedge Fund Index has fallen 4.1 percent year-to-date. In August alone, it fell .72 percent. The index has been positive in just three months this year. "This is the worst start to a year for hedge funds since the beginning of the Hennessee Hedge Fund Index in 1987," Hennessee Group co-founder Charles Gradante notes. Global macro and equity long/short funds were weak in August. But the biggest losers were emerging markets funds. Short-biased funds, the big winner YTD, nevertheless had a bad month, as stocks rallied. Arbitrage and event-driven funds were able to eke out gains.

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- here's the release

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