Equity index futures trading and stock price crash risk

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyze how the exchange of equity index futures affects the crash risk of individual stock. First, the main outcome of this study is the relationship between equity futures transaction and the crash risk is positive in the Korean market. The reason for this is that equity futures trading in the Korean market accounts for a large portion of the transactions made by individual investors. This is because equity futures transaction by individual investors that do not have information reduce the efficiency of information in the spot market and therefore do not prevent the components that make up the stock index from firm’s specific return falling substantially. Second, more opinions about stock prices by analysts decrease the impact of equity futures trading on crash risks. Information efficiency previously degraded by individual investors appears to be offset by the role of analysts to deliver information.