Probability of Information-Based Trading as a Pricing Factor in Taiwan Stock Market

Abstract

Easley, Hvidkjaer and O'Hara (2002) study the role of information-based trading in affecting U.S. asset returns. They find that information risk or the probability of information-based trading (PIN) is a determinant of the expected returns of NYSE listed stocks. In this paper, we investigate whether emerging financial markets also share similar findings. Specifically, we use transactions and quote data of Taiwan Stock Exchange to measure PIN. Cross-sectional asset pricing tests show that PIN is a significant pricing factor in Taiwan stock market. An increase of ten percentage point in PIN on average requires an additional of four to seven percent in annual stock returns.

Keywords: Information-based trading, cross-sectional asset pricing test

JEL Classification: G12, G14, G15