A study on Co-integration of Pakistani Stock Market with selected Asian Stock Markets

Abstract

Pakistani Equity Market has seen many ups and downs since the last two decades. The local investors are feeling themselves much insecure in indigenous investment. The reasons behind are political instability, severe power crises and terrorism which compelled the local investors to go across boarder and need to explore the multiple option of investment in international securities to minimize the investment risk. The main purpose and scope of this study is to explore causal and dynamic linkages of Karachi Stock Exchange, KSE-100 index (Pakistan) with emerging stock markets of Nikkei-225 (Japan), Shanghai Stock Exchange, SSE (China), Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange, KLSE (Malaysia) and Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation, TSEC Taiwan. The most recent data is taken from January, 2001 to December, 2013. Monthly stock index observations are taken. Descriptive statistics, Correlation Analysis, Unit Root Test, VAR, Co-integration Test, VECM Test are used to identify the presence of short-term as well as long-term associations. Empirical results indicate that KSE-100 is a volatile market and have suitable level of returns. Moreover, KSE-100 index has not long-term relationship with Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan and China but Taiwan, China and Japan has short run relationships to KSE. The findings conclude that there is a further need of future study to explore the factors of economic integration amongst these equity markets. The study overall exhibits awareness not only for economic and financial decision makers but also for international as well as regional investors about the benefit opportunities of portfolio diversification in these equity markets, funds management and trends of the stock market.