Share:


Investors’ sentiment and equity markets during COVID-19 period: a quantile regression approach and wavelet analysis

    Ștefan Cristian Gherghina Affiliation
    ; Seyed Mehdian Affiliation
    ; Ovidiu Stoica Affiliation

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between investor sentiment and leading equity market indices from the U.S., Europe, Asia, and globally between January 2020 and June 2022. The methodological approaches utilized are quantile regression and wavelet analysis. The results of quantile regression suggested that Google Search Volume (GSV) and Twitter-based Market Uncertainty Index (TMU) negatively influenced the equity indices at lower quantiles. The wavelet coherence analysis highlighted that, at lower frequency bands, GSV moves in sync with the S&P 500, NASDAQ Composite, Dow Jones Industrials, and FTSE 100 but not with the DAX, CAC 40, TOPIX, Nikkei 225, or MSCI. Nonetheless, when the TMU was used to measure investors’ sentiment, the results revealed that the whole series was out of phase.

Keyword : investors’ sentiment, equity markets, COVID-19, quantile regression, wavelet coherence, wavelet cross-correlation

How to Cite
Gherghina, Ștefan C., Mehdian, S., & Stoica, O. (2023). Investors’ sentiment and equity markets during COVID-19 period: a quantile regression approach and wavelet analysis. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 24(3), 551–575. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2023.19814
Published in Issue
Sep 28, 2023
Abstract Views
472
PDF Downloads
485
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Awijen, H., Zaied, Y. B., & Nguyen, D. K. (2022). Covid-19 vaccination, fear and anxiety: Evidence from Google search trends. Social Science & Medicine, 297, 114820. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114820

Baker, M., & Wurgler, J. (2006). Investor sentiment and the cross-section of stock returns. The Journal of Finance, 61(4), 1645–1680. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2006.00885.x

Behera, C., & Rath, B. N. (2022). The connectedness between Twitter uncertainty index and stock return volatility in the G7 countries. Applied Economics Letters, 29(20), 1876–1879. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2021.1963656

Behera, J., Pasayat, A. K., & Behera, H. (2022). COVID-19 vaccination effect on stock market and death rate in India. Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, 29, 651–673. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10690-022-09364-w

Biktimirov, E. N., Sokolyk, T., & Ayanso, A. (2021). Sentiment and hype of business media topics and stock market returns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 31, 100542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbef.2021.100542

Cevik, E., Altinkeski, B. K., Cevik, E. I., & Dibooglu, S. (2022). Investor sentiments and stock markets during the COVID-19 pandemic. Financial Innovation, 8, 69. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40854-022-00375-0

Chakraborty, M., & Subramaniam, S. (2020). Asymmetric relationship of investor sentiment with stock return and volatility: Evidence from India. Review of Behavioral Finance, 12(4), 435–454. https://doi.org/10.1108/RBF-07-2019-0094

Chatterjee, U., & French, J. J. (2022). A note on tweeting and equity markets before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Finance Research Letters, 46, 102224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2021.102224

Chi, L., Zhuang, X., & Song, D. (2012). Investor sentiment in the Chinese stock market: An empirical analysis. Applied Economics Letters, 19(4), 345–348. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2011.577003

Chundakkadan, R., & Nedumparambil, E. (2022). In search of COVID-19 and stock market behavior. Global Finance Journal, 54, 100639. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfj.2021.100639

Costa, A., da Silva, C., & Matos, P. (2022). The Brazilian financial market reaction to COVID-19: A wavelet analysis. International Review of Economics & Finance, 82, 13–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2022.05.010

Costola, M., Iacopini, M., & Santagiustina, C. R. M. A. (2021). Google search volumes and the financial markets during the COVID-19 outbreak. Finance Research Letters, 42, 101884. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2020.101884

Da, Z., Engelberg, J., & Gao, P. (2015). The sum of all FEARS investor sentiment and asset prices. The Review of Financial Studies, 28(1), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1093/rfs/hhu072

Dash, S. R., & Maitra, D. (2022). The COVID-19 pandemic uncertainty, investor sentiment, and global equity markets: Evidence from the time-frequency co-movements. The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, 62, 101712. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.najef.2022.101712

Debata, B., Ghate, K., & Renganathan, J. (2021). COVID-19 pandemic sentiment and stock market behavior: Evidence from an emerging market. Review of Behavioral Finance, 15(2). https://doi.org/10.1108/RBF-05-2021-0083

Dey, A. K., Hoque, G. M. T., Das, K. P., & Panovska, I. (2022). Impacts of COVID-19 local spread and Google search trend on the US stock market. Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 589, 126423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physa.2021.126423

Fang, L., & Peress, J. (2009). Media coverage and the cross-section of stock returns. The Journal of Finance, 64(5), 2023–2052. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2009.01493.x

Gherghina, Ş. C., & Simionescu, L. N. (2022). Exploring the co-movements between stock market returns and COVID 19 pandemic: Evidence from wavelet coherence analysis. Applied Economics Letters, 29(15), 1405–1413. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2021.1937034

Gong, X., Zhang, W., Wang, J., & Wang, C. (2022). Investor sentiment and stock volatility: New evidence. International Review of Financial Analysis, 80, 102028. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2022.102028

Goupillaud, P., Grossmann, A., & Morlet, J. (1984). Cycle-octave and related transforms in seismic signal analysis. Geoexploration, 23(1), 85–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-7142(84)90025-5

Guan, C., Liu, W., & Cheng, J. Y.-C. (2022). Using social media to predict the stock market crash and rebound amid the pandemic: The digital ‘haves’ and ‘have-mores’. Annals of Data Science, 9, 5–31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40745-021-00353-w

Hasan, M. T. (2022). The sum of all SCARES COVID-19 sentiment and asset return. The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 86, 332–346. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qref.2022.08.005

Hirshleifer, D., Jiang, D., & DiGiovanni, Y. M. (2020). Mood beta and seasonalities in stock returns. Journal of Financial Economics, 137(1), 272–295. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2020.02.003

Ho, K. C., Gao, Y., Gu, Q., & Yang, D. (2022). Covid-19 vaccine approvals and stock market returns: The case of Chinese stocks. Economics Letters, 215, 110466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110466

Hsu, Y.-L., & Tang, L. (2022). Effects of investor sentiment and country governance on unexpected conditional volatility during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from global stock markets. International Review of Financial Analysis, 82, 102186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2022.102186

Huynh, T. L. D., Foglia, M., Nasir, M. A., & Angelini, E. (2021). Feverish sentiment and global equity markets during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 188, 1088–1108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2021.06.016

Kamstra, M. J., Kramer, L. A., & Levi, M. D. (2003). Winter blues: A SAD stock market cycle. The American Economic Review, 93(1), 324–343. https://doi.org/10.1257/000282803321455322

Karamti, C., & Belhassine, O. (2022). COVID-19 pandemic waves and global financial markets: Evidence from wavelet coherence analysis. Finance Research Letters, 45, 102136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2021.102136

Khoury, R. E., & Alshater, M. M. (2022). Spillovers between Twitter uncertainty indexes and sector indexes: Evidence from the US. Borsa Istanbul Review, 22(5), 961–974. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bir.2022.07.002

Koenker, R., & Gilbert Bassett, J. (1978). Regression quantiles. Econometrica, 46(1), 33–50. https://doi.org/10.2307/1913643

Lazzini, A., Lazzini, S., Balluchi, F., & Mazza, M. (2022). Emotions, moods and hyperreality: Social media and the stock market during the first phase of COVID-19 pandemic. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 35(1), 199–215. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-08-2020-4786

Liu, Z., Huynh, T. L. D., & Dai, P.-F. (2021). The impact of COVID-19 on the stock market crash risk in China. Research in International Business and Finance, 57, 101419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2021.101419

Maia, V. M., Tommasetti, R., & Macedo, M. A. d. S. (2021). Australian market response to COVID-19 as moderated by social media. Pacific Accounting Review, 33(5), 625–635. https://doi.org/10.1108/PAR-09-2020-0138

Martins, A. M., & Cró, S. (2022). Airline stock markets reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak and vaccines: An event study. Journal of Air Transport Management, 105, 102281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jairtraman.2022.102281

Mezghani, T., Boujelbène, M., & Elbayar, M. (2021). Impact of COVID‐19 pandemic on risk transmission between googling investor’s sentiment, the Chinese stock and bond markets. China Finance Review International, 11(3), 322–348. https://doi.org/10.1108/CFRI-08-2020-0120

Nian, R., Xu, Y., Yuan, Q., Feng, C., & Lendasse, A. (2021). Quantifying time-frequency co-movement impact of COVID-19 on U.S. and China stock market toward investor sentiment index. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 727047. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.727047

Niu, H., Lu, Y., & Wang, W. (2021). Does investor sentiment differently affect stocks in different sectors? Evidence from China. International Journal of Emerging Markets. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOEM-11-2020-1298

Ortmann, R., Pelster, M., & Wengerek, S. T. (2020). COVID-19 and investor behavior. Finance Research Letters, 37, 101717. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2020.101717

Piñeiro-Chousa, J., López-Cabarcos, M. Á., Quiñoá-Piñeiro, L., & Pérez-Pico, A. M. (2022). US biopharmaceutical companies’ stock market reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding the concept of the ‘paradoxical spiral’ from a sustainability perspective. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 175, 121365. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121365

Ryu, D., Kim, H., & Yang, H. (2017). Investor sentiment, trading behavior and stock returns. Applied Economics Letters, 24, 826–830. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2016.1231890

Salisu, A. A., & Akanni, L. O. (2020). Constructing a global fear index for the COVID-19 pandemic. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, 56, 2310–2331. https://doi.org/10.1080/1540496X.2020.1785424

Sarirete, A. (2022). Sentiment analysis tracking of COVID-19 vaccine through tweets. Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Humanized Computing. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12652-022-03805-0

Sing, N. B., & Singh, R. G. (2023). Investor attention and reaction in COVID-19 crisis: Sentiment analysis in the Indian stock market. Managerial Finance, 49(3), 470–491. https://doi.org/10.1108/MF-06-2021-0258

Smales, L. A. (2021). Investor attention and global market returns during the COVID-19 crisis. International Review of Financial Analysis, 73, 101616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2020.101616

Soltani, H., & Abbes, M. B. (2022). The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the nexus between the investor’s sentiment and the financial market dynamics: Evidence from the Chinese market. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJBA-07-2021-0326

Subramaniam, S., & Chakraborty, M. (2021). COVID-19 fear index: Does it matter for stock market returns? Review of Behavioral Finance, 13(1), 40–50. https://doi.org/10.1108/RBF-08-2020-0215

Sun, Y., Bao, Q., & Lu, Z. (2021). Coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak, investor sentiment, and medical portfolio: Evidence from China, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, and U.S. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 65, 101463. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pacfin.2020.101463

Swamy, V., Dharani, M., & Takeda, F. (2019). Investor attention and Google Search Volume Index: Evidence from an emerging market using quantile regression analysis. Research in International Business and Finance, 50, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2019.04.010

Szczygielski, J. J., Bwanya, P. R., Charteris, A., & Brzeszczyński, J. (2021). The only certainty is uncertainty: An analysis of the impact of COVID-19 uncertainty on regional stock markets. Finance Research Letters, 43, 101945. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2021.101945

Tiwari, A. K., Abakah, E. J. A., Bonsu, C. O., Karikari, N. K., & Hammoudeh, S. (2022). The effects of public sentiments and feelings on stock market behavior: Evidence from Australia. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 193, 443–472. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2021.11.026

Torrence, C., & Compo, G. P. (1998). A practical guide to wavelet analysis. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 79(1), 61–78. 2.0.CO;2> https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1998)079<0061:APGTWA>2.0.CO;2

Torrence, C., & Webster, P. J. (1999). Interdecadal changes in the ENSO–Monsoon system. Journal of Climate, 12(8), 2679–2690. 2.0.CO;2> https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0442(1999)012<2679:ICITEM>2.0.CO;2

Umar, Z., Adekoya, O. B., Oliyide, J. A., & Gubareva, M. (2021). Media sentiment and short stocks performance during a systemic crisis. International Review of Financial Analysis, 78, 101896. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2021.101896

Umar, Z., & Gubareva, M. (2021). Faith-based investments and the Covid-19 pandemic: Analyzing equity volatility and media coverage time-frequency relations. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 67, 101571. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pacfin.2021.101571

Wang, H., Xu, L., & Sharma, S. S. (2021). Does investor attention increase stock market volatility during the COVID-19 pandemic? Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 69, 101638. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pacfin.2021.101638

Wang, Q., & Liu, L. (2022). Pandemic or panic? A firm-level study on the psychological and industrial impacts of COVID-19 on the Chinese stock market. Financial Innovation, 8, 36. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40854-022-00335-8

Wasiuzzaman, S. (2022). Impact of COVID-19 on the Saudi stock market: Analysis of return, volatility and trading volume. Journal of Asset Management, 23, 350–363. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41260-022-00269-x

Xie, D., Cui, Y., & Liu, Y. (2021). How does investor sentiment impact stock volatility? New evidence from Shanghai A-shares market. China Finance Review International, 13(1), 102–120. https://doi.org/10.1108/CFRI-01-2021-0007

Yuan, Y., Wang, H., & Jin, X. (2022). Pandemic-driven financial contagion and investor behavior: Evidence from the COVID-19. International Review of Financial Analysis, 83, 102315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2022.102315

Zhang, Y., & Hamori, S. (2021). Do news sentiment and the economic uncertainty caused by public health events impact macroeconomic indicators? Evidence from a TVP-VAR decomposition approach. The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 82, 145–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qref.2021.08.003

Zhou, G. (2018). Measuring investor sentiment. Annual Review of Financial Economics, 10, 239–259. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-financial-110217-022725