Hedge funds felt the chilly winds of the global financial crisis in September, a financial markets tracker said Friday.

Hedge fund are expected to record their worst month in more than 10 years, with average losses of 5 percent to 9 percent for the month, Charles Gradante, managing principal of Hennessee Group, said in a statement.

The Hennessee Group, which advises institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals on hedge fund investing, attributed the weak performance to erratic financial markets driven by fear, restrictions by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on short-selling some stocks, and hedge funds’ reduction in the use of margin as costs increase.

Hedge funds’ projected losses in September compare with a 9 percent decline in the Standard & Poor’s 500 and a 12 percent dip in the MSCI World Index.

Hedge funds were down 4.1 percent through August, according to Hennessee. A rival index, the Credit Suisse-Tremont Hedge Fund Index, puts losses at 3.6 percent through August.