The magic of macro...

While getting the strategy and manager mix right may be the 'visible' end of a successful fund of hedge funds house, Permal's Omar Kodmani explains to Solomon Teague advances, such as those in technology are also allowing the $35bn London house to differentiate itself in an increasingly competitive marketplace

Much has been made of the relative weakness of the global macro strategy in recent years, falling as it has from what some have described as its 'Halcyon days'.

"The last time there was this level of negative sentiment was in 1999," says Omar Kodmani, senior executive officer at Permal Investment Managers, smiling as he recalls an issue of Business Week, which ran with a cover story asking whether the strategy was dead.

It was a question which has been on the tips of the lips of many others.

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