The big drop in global equities markets in August took a heavy toll on hedge funds, according data released this week by Hedge Fund Research. The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index experienced its biggest drop since May 2012, falling 1.9% for the month and paring the index’s year-to-date return to 0.2%. Only some 31% of all hedge funds reported gains in August, while the top quartile of all hedge funds posted an average gain of 2.8%. “After falling for several months, macroeconomic volatility and uncertainty increased sharply as a result of slowing growth in China and the first and second...