GFIA reports Brazilian hedge funds had reached $40bln in assets in July....

Singapore-based GFIA, the hedge fund consulting firm focused on developing markets, reports in its semi-annual Latin American Hedge Funds Note that as of July 2008 Brazil has grown to represent approximately $40bln of the hedge fund assets investing in Latin America (up from $31bln in 2007).

Expectations of Latin American hedge fund strategy shifts
The first local Latin American hedge funds appeared in Brazil in the mid-1990�s. GFIA identifies an onshore hedge fund industry of 340 funds (managed by 169 different managers) and reports almost half are macro funds, which have seen a decline in performance over the past few years. �Given the scarcity of opportunities in the macro trading space, we believe that macro managers may be forced to reshuffle their business models and �reinvent� themselves,� writes Peter Douglas, Principal at GFIA.

Two strategies which have gained footing in the region are long/short equities and fixed income. Long/short equities is the fastest growing strategy with an increa......................

Source:
http://www.opalesque.com/AMB2008/47800GFIA_reports_Brazilian_hedge_funds_had.html