Information Asymmetry,Trade Size,and the Dynamic Volume‐Return Relation: Evidence from the Australian Securities Exchange

This paper investigates the influence of information asymmetry on the cross‐sectional variation of volume‐return relation. We find that the dynamic volume‐return relation within medium‐size trades has the most significant response to the degree of information asymmetry. We also show that the effect of information asymmetry on the volume‐return dynamics migrates to small‐size trades in recent years, especially in larger stocks. These results are consistent with the notion that informed traders prefer medium‐size trades and this preference has shifted to small‐size trades. Our findings highlight the importance of incorporating informed traders’ trade‐size decision in the examination of the dynamic volume‐return relation.     

Investor Sentiment,Trading Behavior and Informational Efficiency in Index Futures Markets

This paper shows that traders in index futures markets are positive feedback traders—they buy when prices increase and sell when prices decline. Positive feedback trading appears to be more active in periods of high investor sentiment. This finding is consistent with the notion that feedback trading is driven by expectations of noise traders. Consistent with the noise trading hypothesis, order flow in index futures markets is less informative when investors are optimistic. Transitory volatility measured at high frequencies also appears to decline in periods of bullish sentiment, suggesting that sentiment‐driven trading increases market liquidity.     

The Risk‐Return Relation in International Stock Markets

We investigate the risk‐return relation in international stock markets using realized variance constructed from MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) daily stock price indices. In contrast with the capital asset pricing model, realized variance by itself provides negligible information about future excess stock market returns; however, we uncover a positive and significant risk‐return tradeoff in many countries after controlling for the (U.S.) consumption‐wealth ratio. U.S. realized variance is also significantly related to future international stock market returns; more importantly, it always subsumes the information content of its local counterparts. Our results indicate that stock market variance is an important determinant of the equity premium.     

The U.S. Share of Trading Volume in Cross‐Listings: Evidence from Canadian Stocks

I analyze the firm‐specific determinants of the U.S. share of trading volume for 126 U.S.‐listed Canadian firms. I find that the U.S. share of volume is directly related to the mass of informed and liquidity traders in the United States relative to Canada, as proxied by relative analyst following, relative duration of listing, and the U.S. share of sales. Evidence also supports the market liquidity argument that the market with lower spreads and greater depths has greater volume. Finally, the U.S. share is directly related to the relative sensitivity of the stock's value to information in the United States.     

Asymmetric Volatility,Skewness, and Downside Risk in Different Asset Classes: Evidence from Futures Markets

This study examines the cross‐sectional variation of futures returns from different asset classes. The monthly returns are positively correlated with downside risk and negatively correlated with coskewness. The asymmetric volatility effect generates negatively skewed returns. Assets with high coskewness and low downside betas provide hedges against market downside risk and offer low returns. The high returns offered by assets with low coskewness and high downside betas are a risk premium for bearing downside risk. The asset pricing model that incorporates downside risk partially explains the futures returns. The results indicate a unified risk perspective to jointly price different asset classes.     

Commemorating the 50‐Year Anniversary of Ball and Brown (1968): The Evolution of Capital Market Research over the Past 50 Years

We commemorate the 50th anniversary of Ball and Brown [1968] by chronicling its impact on capital market research in accounting. We trace the evolution of various research paths that post–Ball and Brown [1968] researchers took as they sought to build on the foundation laid by Ball and Brown [1968] to create a body of research on the usefulness, timeliness, and other properties of accounting numbers. We discuss how those paths often link back to the groundwork laid and questions originally posed in Ball and Brown [1968].