Global hedge funds dump everything except property shares, says Goldman Sachs

By Nell Mackenzie

London (Reuters) – Hedge Funds last week jumped global stocks and added efforts they would reject, Goldman Sachs said just before US President Trump announced duty that sent the global markets tumbled.

Global stocks slipped Monday after US President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs in Canada, Mexico and China this weekend and started a trade war that could limit economic growth internationally.

Hedge funds in the week to Friday sold their stock in any geographical region except for developed markets in Asia, a Goldman Sachs note showed Friday and seen by Reuters Monday.

The sale was the largest since August when a meltdown of the stock market, which started with the settlement of the Yen Carry dealer, which was mugged into US tech shares, the bank said.

Hedge funds are aiming for all sectors, but industrial, consumers’ discretionary, energy and communication services that drilled brown from sales.

The number of short positions betting on falling industrial warehouses approached almost twice as many lengths betting in this sector would rise, Goldman said.

Real estate shares were the only sectors where hedge funds bet that values ​​would rise, Goldman Sachs said.

Here, hedge funds bought shares for the fourth week and at the fastest pace of two months, the bank said.

All types of listed property have been popular with hedge funds, including housing, retail and health care, says it.

“Real estate often performs well in inflation environments as property values ​​and rent tend to rise with inflation,” said Bruno Schneller, CEO of Erlen Capital Management.

“If trade war leads to higher import costs and wider inflation pressure (via tariffs), real estate becomes an even more attractive hedge towards eroding purchasing power.”

(Reporting Nell Mackenzie; Editing Dhara Ranasinghe and Christina Fincher)