Paul Krake, host of Climate Transformed, chats with Brennan Basnicki, partner at Auspice Capital Advisors, about how investing in commodities fits within an ESG framework as well as whether commodities are an ideal hedge against inflation.

“People have this idea that commodities and ESG are just diametrically opposed, and we get some of that. We've always said producing commodities, particularly in the mining and extraction business, is inherently an invasive process,” Auspice Capital President and CIO Tim Pickering, told Wealth Professional. “But the question is, how do you go about gaining that commodity exposure as an investor?”

The HFM US Performance Awards 2021 took place on the evening of November 4 at the stunning Gotham Hall, New York, bringing together the US hedge fund industry to connect. The awards celebrated hedge fund, CTA and fund of hedge fund performance, encompassing the whole breadth of hedge fund strategy, from credit and equity to macro and managed futures.

We are proud to share that Auspice Diversified was selected as winner of the managed futures (CTA) under $1bn category.

The Direxion Auspice Broad Commodity Strategy ETF, COM, is one of the only commodity ETFs to have a five-star Morningstar rating and has outperformed all other broad commodity ETFs with significantly less volatility and drawdown.

“Borrowing the trend-following approach from our CTA/managed futures background, the strategy has produced far better risk-adjusted results alongside superior long-term absolute returns by exiting markets that are weak yet participating in commodity upside based on the merits of an individual commodity market — not a broad shotgun approach. Commodity markets are simply too unique for that approach to outperform long-term.”

Auspice Founder Tim Pickering was picked up by Reuters alongside Pierre Andurand, Odey Asset Management and other industry legends.

“Auspice, with a 70% allocation to commodities, more than doubled its assets in a year, from around C$200 million ($165 million) to C$500 million. Tim Pickering, the fund's chief investment officer, said commodities will remain a popular bet as investors seek insurance against inflation.”

Canadian commodities shop Auspice Capital is riding the recovery in commodities to new highs. Auspice is now up 15% across its trading programs year to date through the end of April, according to a performance update for investors reviewed by Opalesque.

Auspice's positive performance builds on the momentum that started last year. The fund ended 2020 up 18.46%..

ETF Trends CEO Tom Lydon discussed the Direxion Auspice Broad Commodity Strategy ETF (COM) on this week’s “ETF of the Week” podcast with Chuck Jaffe on the MoneyLife Show.

“Commodities may provide a valuable diversifying component to any long-term investment portfolio. Why commodities? Inflation protection. Commodities represent a significant portion of the CPI’s volatility, resulting in a positive and often outsized response to inflation.”

Commodities potentially stand on the cusp of their most exciting period in 25 years