Oaktree mixes defensive with opportunistic in new fund for recent hire
Oaktree Capital Management has launched a standalone absolute return fixed income fund for recent hire Brad Boyd, according to market sources

Convergence trades in focus as US high yield wobbles at the tights
US convergence with Europe is the theme of this week, at least in high yield, with CDX HY having narrowed to within 80bp of iTraxx Crossover 

There will surely be jewels in the high yield dung heap, but the risk-reward is more compelling in IG
Whatever the long-term effects of the pandemic, one thing stays the same: IG looks attractive

US lags as credit explores three-month tights
Credit markets in Europe and Asia have begun June on a rally to their tightest levels in nearly three months, with optimism over reopening economies outweighing concern about US/China trade negotiations. But US credit looks set for a more cautious opening, after a weekend of widespread protests and rioting

Fund performance: CLO tranches move up
April returns managed a partial bounce back after a tumultuous March. 82% of funds listed in the Creditflux database made positive returns, showing at least small signs of recovery after 90% of all funds listed posted negative returns in March

Credit funds at a glance (June 2020)
A round-up of fundraising and people moves

Ucits at a glance: Ucits begin recovery phase
April returns prove positive for Ucits funds as 85% of those listed in the Creditflux database have moved into the black after a rough March

Saba launches new credit hedge fund
Saba Capital has raised at least $165 million for a new credit hedge fund,

Eaton Vance signals intention to raise new credit fund
Eaton Vance Management has filed a preliminary prospectus with the SEC for a new opportunistic credit fund, Eaton Vance Income Opportunities Fund

PGIM prepares short duration fund
PGIM has filed its intentions to begin fundraising for a new opportunistic fund. PGIM Short Duration High Yield Opportunities Fund will invest primarily in high yield fixed income instruments that are rated below investment grade

Volatility trading has room to run, say strategists, as market holds firm after rally
Big intraday swings have abated from the credit market, but spreads are finely poised in their mid-range positioning between the March peaks of the crisis and pre-crisis levels. According to strategists, this leaves plenty to play for in volatility trading

Idiosyncratic risk keeps traders on their toes as volatility abates
Global credit markets are ending the week at wider levels, after early gains, with optimism waning on the likely pace of recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and nervousness ahead of key economic numbers next week. But volatility has clearly abated from the picture, replaced by greater focus on some of the more troubled companies and sectors

Assurant outsources investment management
Assurant has outsourced the management of its core investment portfolio to Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Voya Investment Management

KKR takes covid-19 hit on flagship credit funds and lev fin
KKR took a 16% hit to returns on its alternative credit flagship funds amid the first quarter coronavirus downturn and a 13% loss on leveraged credit, taking these into negative territory for the last 12 months. The firm's private equity portfolio also slumped by 12%

Credit hedge fund returns: March 2020 stats
Monthly performance across credit hedge funds

Fund performance: Index tranche investors make it work from home
March brought a drastic drop in return figures as covid-19 swept across the globe, as Orchard tops the Creditflux performance tables

Ucits at a glance: Long-short credit capitalises on coronavirus
Ucits funds were not spared from the crash in mid-March, but Pictet outperforms

Credit funds at a glance (May 2020)
A round-up of fundraising and people moves

Credit finely poised despite German affront to ECB bond buying programme
Credit markets have hit a moment of near equilibrium, with little change in most spreads, as the market seeks firmer answers to questions lockdown easing, earnings, oil supply/demand and political stand-offs

US-Europe relative value gap closes as market sell-off resumes
Credit markets are heading wider into the weekend, with European underperformance closing a relative value gap that had opened with the US last Friday. The moves accompany detoriation in equity markets, stoked by the threat of a renewed US-China tariff war, pressured bank results, airline job cuts and poor UK economic numbers

Selecta and Southwest battered as market trades flat as a pancake
Single name credit movements are taking focus as market volatility abates, with Selecta Group and Southwest Airlines earnings putting them among the biggest wideners

Airlines and banks lead way as credit rallies on aid measures
Airlines are getting the best of a positive start to the week, with hopes of financial assistance growing for European carriers and spreads generally pushing tighter after the Bank of Japan unveiled new stimulus measures

Credit keeps its own rhythm amid oil crash and EU clash
As another week of worry and disappointment ends, the most optimistic thing that can be said for credit is the new peak spreads are lower than those that went before - suggesting a more manageable level of volatility is starting to characterise the market

SEC proposes new fund valuation framework
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed a new framework for funds to determine fair value for assets for which market quotations are not readily available, which it says will "improve valuation practices and thereby protecting investors and improving market efficiency, integrity and fairness"

US/Europe relative value in play as oil prices stabilise
Tightening European credit indices today have added to the relative value trading opportunity with US counterparts ahead of that market's open