An Examination of Herd Behavior in Equity Markets: An International Perspective
39 Pages Posted: 29 Sep 1999
There are 2 versions of this paper
An Examination of Herd Behavior in Equity Markets: An International Perspective
An Examination of Herd Behavior in Equity Markets: An International Perspective
Date Written: August 20, 1999
Abstract
We examine the investment behavior of market participants within different international markets (i.e., U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan), specifically with regard to their tendency to exhibit herd behavior. We find no evidence of herding on the part of market participants in the U.S. and Hong Kong and partial evidence of herding in Japan. However, for South Korea and Taiwan, the two emerging markets in our sample, we document significant evidence of herding. The results are robust across various size-based portfolios and over time. Furthermore, macroeconomic information rather than firm-specific information tends to have a more significant impact on investor behavior in markets which exhibit herding. In all five markets, the rate of increase in security return dispersion as a function of the aggregate market return is higher in up market, relative to down market days. This is consistent with the directional asymmetry documented by McQueen, Pinegar, and Thorley (1996).
JEL Classification: G12, G14
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation