Publication of the week: Dr Anwar Halari

Halari, A., “Investigating calendar influence in the Karachi Stock Exchange”, International Research Journal of Finance and Economics 118 (2014), 131-145

This paper examines the influence of the Gregorian and the Islamic calendar in explaining any variance in the share returns of the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE). In addition to the calendar influence, this study sought to uncover whether any variation in share returns earned by the equities from the KSE were related to the size of the firms, the sector in which the firm was located or a particular year from the sample period. This paper reports the results of quantitative analysis based on the daily share price data for 106 companies listed on the KSE over the 17-year period from 1995 to 2011. The results indicate that investing on a sectorial or size basis is less effective than allocating the funds to firms in different months of calendar. More specifically, the analysis revealed that investors may benefit more from aligning their portfolios according to the Gregorian calendar months, and the patterns attached to it rather than the Islamic calendar months since the latter is less influential in explaining the returns of the KSE. Furthermore, the study highlighted that returns earned by equities in the KSE vary significantly from year-to-year; indicating the volatile nature of the KSE market.

Dr Anwar Halari is Lecturer in Accounting and Finance at Buckingham.  His current research covers efficient market hypothesis, emerging stock market performance and market anomalies. He is also interested in Islamic banking and finance.