Some of Europe’s most prominent hedge fund managers have suffered sharp losses after their trend-following funds were hit by “violent” reversals in April and May.

The Lyxor CTA Broad Index, which tracks the performance of trend-following funds, often known as commodity trading adviser funds, or CTAs, showed that by May 19 the sector had made just 0.6% over the year, losing almost all the 9.1% gains it had recorded at the end of March.