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Financial Asset Returns, Direction-of-Change Forecasting, and Volatility Dynamics

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Author Info
Peter F. Christoffersen () (McGill University and CIRANO)
Francis X. Diebold () (University of Pennsylvania and NBER)

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Abstract

We consider three sets of phenomena that feature prominently – and separately – in the financial economics literature: conditional mean dependence (or lack thereof) in asset returns, dependence (and hence forecastability) in asset return signs, and dependence (and hence forecastability) in asset return volatilities. We show that they are very much interrelated, and we explore the relationships in detail. Among other things, we show that: (a) Volatility dependence produces sign dependence, so long as expected returns are nonzero, so that one should expect sign dependence, given the overwhelming evidence of volatility dependence; (b) The standard finding of little or no conditional mean dependence is entirely consistent with a significant degree of sign dependence and volatility dependence; (c) Sign dependence is not likely to be found via analysis of sign autocorrelations, runs tests, or traditional market timing tests, because of the special nonlinear nature of sign dependence; (d) Sign dependence is not likely to be found in very high-frequency (e.g., daily) or very low-frequency (e.g., annual) returns; instead, it is more likely to be found at intermediate return horizons; (e) Sign dependence is very much present in actual U.S. equity returns, and its properties match closely our theoretical predictions; (f) The link between volatility forecastability and sign forecastability remains intact in conditionally non-Gaussian environments, as for example with time-varying conditional skewness and/or kurtosis.

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Paper provided by Center for Financial Studies in its series CFS Working Paper Series with number 2004/08.

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Length: 42 pages
Date of creation: 08 Jan 2004
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Handle: RePEc:cfs:cfswop:wp200408

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  1. Gilbert W. Bassett Jr & Roger Koenker & Gregory Kordas, 2004. "Pessimistic portfolio allocation and Choquet expected utility," CeMMAP working papers CWP09/04, Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice, Institute for Fiscal Studies. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Stanislav Anatolyev, 2006. "Nonparametric retrospection and monitoring of predictability of financial returns," Working Papers w0071, Center for Economic and Financial Research (CEFIR). [Downloadable!]
  3. Pedro N. Rodríguez, & Simón Sosvilla-Rivero, 2006. "Forecasting Stock Price Changes: Is it Possible?," Working Papers 2006-22, FEDEA. [Downloadable!]
  4. Massimo Guidolin & Allan Timmerman, 2005. "Term structure of risk under alternative econometric specifications," Working Papers 2005-001, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Peter F. Christoffersen & Francis X. Diebold & Roberto S. Mariano & Anthony S. Tay & Yiu Kuen Tse, 2006. "Direction-of-Change Forecasts Based on Conditional Variance, Skewness and Kurtosis Dynamics: International Evidence," PIER Working Paper Archive 06-016, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania. [Downloadable!]
  6. Stanislav Anatolyev & Nikolay Gospodinov, 2007. "Modeling Financial Return Dynamics by Decomposition," Working Papers w0095, Center for Economic and Financial Research (CEFIR). [Downloadable!]
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