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High-frequency liquidity in the Chinese stock market: Measurements, patterns, and determinants

Author

Listed:
  • Zhao, Chaoyi
  • Chen, Yufan
  • Wu, Lintong
  • Dai, Yuehao
  • Chen, Ermo
  • Wu, Lan
  • Zhang, Ruixun

Abstract

We explore a broad range of high-frequency liquidity measures for the Chinese stock market, based on a comprehensive tick-level dataset for stocks on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE) with approximately 46.64 billion events in 2019–2021. We integrate the raw event-level data into a granular and continuous limit order book for each stock for the three years. We summarize their liquidity levels and key distributional properties. Hypothesis tests show that order interarrival times follow Weibull—not exponential—distributions, implying that Poisson flow is not an appropriate model for order flow in the Chinese stock market. We analyze the intraday and cross-sectional patterns of liquidity, and find novel intraday periodicities in liquidity at whole-minute frequencies such as 1-minute, 5-minute, and 10-minute. Finally, we propose the aggressive–passive imbalance (API), analogous to the order flow imbalance of Cont, Kukanov, and Stoikov (2014), and develop an order-based model of the change in bid–ask spread that sheds light on the universal mechanism of spread formation with respect to order flows. To the best of our knowledge, this is by far the most comprehensive study of market liquidity for the Chinese stock market in the literature.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhao, Chaoyi & Chen, Yufan & Wu, Lintong & Dai, Yuehao & Chen, Ermo & Wu, Lan & Zhang, Ruixun, 2025. "High-frequency liquidity in the Chinese stock market: Measurements, patterns, and determinants," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pacfin:v:90:y:2025:i:c:s0927538x25000186
    DOI: 10.1016/j.pacfin.2025.102681
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    JEL classification:

    • C55 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Large Data Sets: Modeling and Analysis
    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates
    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G15 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - International Financial Markets

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