1.   Both men ran macro funds, which make big bets on the direction of global stock, bond, currency and commodity markets.

2.   In the futures markets, macro funds as a group are short cotton, Gradante said.

3.   Macro funds have had much of their success in U.S. and European stocks, Gradante said.

4.   The funds are so-called macro funds, meaning investment decisions are based on bets about the direction of macroeconomic trends.

5.   The macro funds had been making money on stocks and futures for much of the year and staying away from the U.S. bond market in recent months.

6.   The upshot is that macro funds are far less keen to take big punts.