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  • 详情 Fund Selection via Dual-Screening Classification Evidence from China
    We propose a novel dual-screening classification framework for fund selection designed to align statistical objectives with investor goals. Testing on the Chinese mutual funds market, a Gradient Boosting model implementing our framework generates a statistically and economically significant 14.65% annual risk-adjusted alpha, substantially outperforming identical models trained under a standard regression framework. Feature importance analysis confirms that fund-level momentum and flows are the most significant predictors of performance in this market. Our findings provide a robust and practical framework for active management, demonstrating that modelling both upside potential and downside risk is critical for superior performance.
  • 详情 Understanding Crude Oil Risk in China: The Role of a Model-Free Volatility Index
    We construct the China Crude Oil Volatility Index (CNOVX)—the first model-free, optionimplied measure of forward-looking oil price risk for China—using INE crude oil options from 2021 to 2024 and an adapted CBOE methodology that accounts for sparse strike availability via smooth interpolation and extrapolation. Our results show that CNOVX increases with trading activity in the futures market, declines with option volume, and is strongly predicted by the 30-day realized variance of the SC crude oil futures contract. External shocks, including the Russia–Ukraine conflict and the Geopolitical Risk Index, significantly elevate CNOVX levels. During the COVID-19 pandemic, mortality risk intensifies the volatility-amplifying role of futures trading and strengthens the volatility-dampening effect of options, while confirmed case counts have weaker influence. We further document a pronounced asymmetric leverage effect: negative futures returns raise CNOVX more than positive returns of equal size. However, volatility feedback effects are negligible, as changes in implied volatility respond primarily to contemporaneous market conditions. Overall, CNOVX serves as a timely and informative benchmark for monitoring risk in China’s evolving crude oil derivatives market, with valuable implications for investors, hedgers, and policymakers.
  • 详情 Towards Fibonacci-Like Sequence Application and Affective Computing in China SSE 50ETF Option Trading
    The Fibonacci sequence is created by the recurrence of Fn = Fn−1 + Fn−2 ( n ≥ 2; F0 = 0; F1=1) from which the nearly 38.2% or 61.8% is derived for revenue increase or decrease. It has been increasingly and widely studied in research on options market trading. The high volatility of the options market makes the option premium greatly affected by the growing emotional involvement of buyers and sellers before the position is closed. The efficient affective computing and measures may provide traders a rough guide to working out the route to a profit. Based on the practical application of Fibonacci-like sequence and affective computing of option trading data in China SSE (Shanghai Stock Exchange) 50ETF options, we concluded that profit statistically changes around 38.2% or 61.8% increase line once call options flood in the market and bring the rapid price acceleration. On the contrary, 38.2% or 61.8% is considered another temporary decrease line when the price quickly falls from the balance point of price under the influence of huge put options. The mixed emotions of greed and fear make the option premium commonly fluctuate in cycles. The Fibonacci-like wavelet analysis is only one of the options volatility strategies, and it does not change the nature of market uncertainty.
  • 详情 Opportunities and Challenges: China will Open ETF Options Market to Qualified Foreign Investors in October
    February 9, 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of China's ETF options market. To celebrate this anniversary, China will open the ETF options market to qualified foreign investors on October 9, 2025. This is both an opportunity and a challenge. This is the first time in a decade that China has decided to open its ETF options market. The challenge is that foreign investors will face competition from China's 1.08 million options investors. This article will discuss the basic rules and requirements for options trading in China. In addition, we will introduce the application of Confusion Quotient sentiment index in options trading, and analyze how options contract premiums fluctuated significantly after the Fed cut interest rates by 50 basis points on September 18, 2024. Within a month, the Fed's interest rate cut triggered a sharp rise in call options contracts in China's options market, with a maximum profit of 3507.32%, and put option contracts suffered huge losses, with a maximum loss of 99.91%. Our findings prove that China's ETF options market is highly volatile, presenting both opportunities and challenges for foreign investors. Options trading is a double-edged sword, and you need to be cautious when entering the market.
  • 详情 Stock Market Interventions and Green Mergers and Acquisitions: Evidence from the National Team of China
    Purpose The study investigates the impact of government intervention policy of capital markets (“National Team”) on firms’ sustainable management, i.e., green mergers and acquisitions (GMAs) in China, aiming to understand how such interventions influence corporate investment activities amidst a growing focus on green transition. Design/methodology/approach The research employs a dynamic analysis of quarterly data from Chinese companies (2014 Q1 to 2022 Q4), utilizing identified strategies, such as double machine learning-DID and multiple panel data regressions to assess the effects of government intervention on GMAs, and examines potential economic channels like liquidity, market stabilization, and informativeness. Findings The study finds that increased government intervention via direct stock purchases significantly boosts both the number and amount of GMAs, with economic significance of 23% and 45%, respectively. It identifies liquidity, market stability, and informativeness efficiency as underlying economic channels for this effect. Practical implications The findings suggest that government interventions can enhance corporate investment in green sectors, guiding firms to align strategies with sustainability goals. This can inform policymakers regarding the effectiveness of direct stock purchases in fostering a green economy, especially for large emerging countries. Social implications By promoting GMAs, government interventions contribute to green innovation and energy transition, ultimately benefiting society through enhanced environmental sustainability and compliance with eco-friendly regulations. Originality/value This research uniquely documents the direct effects of government stock purchases on corporate green financial activities, particularly GMAs, in a Chinese context characterized by tight credit, thereby expanding the understanding of government intervention in emerging markets.
  • 详情 The RegTech Edge: Digitalized SASAC Oversight and Mergers & Acquisitions
    This study investigates the impact of RegTech adoption in the M&A regulatory review process on deal performance. Leveraging the staggered implementation of the SOEs Online Supervision System (SOSS) by China’s State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) across its central and 31 provincial offices from 2018 to 2021, we find that SOSS directly enhances SASAC’s decision-making efficiency and improves its capacity to screen and approve higher-quality M&A deals. More importantly, SOE-led M&A transactions exhibit higher announcement returns as well as improved long-run stock and operating performance following the system’s implementation. The positive impact of SOSS is more pronounced for acquirers with stronger technological infrastructure, in transactions characterized by low transparency and weak governance, and in provinces with more stringent external scrutiny. Overall, by addressing regulator-firm information asymmetry and reinforcing managerial accountability, SOSS improves regulatory effectiveness in overseeing major investment activities among SOEs.
  • 详情 Does Auction Design Facilitate Collusion?
    This paper examines how auction design can unintentionally facilitate bidder collusion in land market. Departing from the dominant view that attributes low land concession revenues to corruption, we highlight how features of auction structure enable bidder-side collusion, suppressing sale prices. Using a dataset of land auctions from 15 Chinese cities (2006–2016), we find that two-stage (listing) auctions are significantly more susceptible to collusion than one-stage formats. Empirical evidence shows that sales concluding at the (secret) reserve price occur disproportionately in two-stage auctions, even after controlling for land and market characteristics. We argue that the transparency and sequencing of two-stage auctions, while designed to enhance fairness, inadvertently reduce monitoring costs and facilitate tacit bidder coordination. Our findings underscore the need to jointly consider auction format and reserve price policy in designing land sales to enhance market efficiency and mitigate collusion risks.
  • 详情 Multi-Slice Zoning Policy, Education Capitalization, and Institutional Innovation for Equity: A Quasi-Experimental Study of Four Chinese Cities
    This study employs a Triple-Difference (Triple-DID) model, utilizing balanced panel data at the district level from Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hangzhou between 2018 and 2024, to critically evaluate the effectiveness of the Multi-School Zoning Policy (MSZP) in suppressing the capitalization of educational resources into housing prices and promoting educational equity. The research explicitly accounts for spatial and institutional heterogeneity as well as household strategic behavior.The results indicate that: (1) MSZP significantly reduced the average housing price premium associated with elite school districts by 15.2%, with the strongest effect observed in Beijing and the weakest in Hangzhou; (2) The policy's effectiveness diminishes as the spatial concentration of high-quality educational resources increases, highlighting persistent structural inequalities; (3) In areas characterized by resource monopolization and strong institutional inertia, the policy's suppressive effect on educational capitalization and its gains in educational equity are both constrained.The findings suggest that MSZP alone cannot fully overcome the "spatial lock-in" effect of high-quality educational resources. Achieving lasting equity requires complementary deeper institutional innovations, such as robust cross-district teacher rotation, transparent resource allocation mechanisms, and adaptive zoning algorithms. This research offers quantitative evidence for optimizing policy and institutional tools in the pursuit of comprehensive urban education reform.
  • 详情 Housing Purchase Intention and Online Search Behavior: Evidence from China’s Housing Market
    We construct a Housing Purchase Intention Index (HPII) using the Baidu Search Index, which captures online search behavior directly reflecting households’ housing purchase intentions. We assess the predictive power of the HPII for the growth rate of housing transaction volume and further examine factors influencing housing purchase intention. The results show that the HPII has significant predictive ability and enhances real-time forecasting accuracy, highlighting the role of search behavior as a behavioral signal in the housing market. We also find that housing purchase intention is shaped by policy, economic, demographic, and supply factors. Specifically, purchase restriction policies exhibit an inverted U-shaped effect; moderate mortgage-rate hikes dampen purchase intention, while persistent increases may induce anticipatory buying. In addition, rising wages, increasing population concentration, and expanded residential land supply consistently strengthen housing purchase intention. These findings provide new behavioral evidence on the drivers of housing demand and underscore the value of search-based indicators for understanding household decision-making in the real estate market.