- The fund surged 59% last year following gains of 87% in 2021
- Andurand says oil prices may exceed $140 a barrel this year
According to Bloomberg article published on January 11, 2023, it has been a rocky start to the year for famed oil trader Pierre Andurand.
His main Andurand Commodities Discretionary Enhanced hedge fund slumped 19% last week, according to an investor letter seen by Bloomberg. It was one of the best performing hedge funds in the world last year.
Oil prices retreated below $74 a barrel in New York in the first week of 2023 as traders worried about demand because of the risk of recession worldwide. The International Monetary Fund warned that a third of the global economy could be in recession this year.
Andurand, who runs his high-conviction strategy, instead predicted that oil prices may exceed $140 a barrel this year if Asian economies fully re-open after Covid-related lockdowns, according to an interview with Bloomberg and a series of social media posts.
“Most of the supply surge is behind us, and the demand surge is ahead of us, meaning much higher prices sometime this year,” he tweeted on Jan. 6.
A spokesman for the firm, which manages about $1.4 billion, declined to comment.
The losses come after a stellar three years for Andurand who guided his hedge fund to a surge of 154% in 2020, 87% in 2021 and 59% in 2022. At one point last year, his fund was up as much as 160% but gave up a large part of the gains during the second half of the year.
