Conditional dynamics driving financial markets

We consider a mean-reverting stochastic volatility model which satisfies some relevant stylized facts of financial markets. We introduce an algorithm for the detection of peaks in the volatility profile, that we apply to the time series of Dow Jones Industrial Average and Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 in the period 1984-2013. Based on empirical results, we propose a bivariate version of the model, for which we find an explicit expression for the decay over time of cross-...

We present a dynamical theory of asset price bubbles that exhibits the appearance of bubbles and their subsequent crashes. We show that when speculative trends dominate over fundamental beliefs, bubbles form, leading to the growth of asset prices away from their fundamental value. This growth makes the system increasingly susceptible to any exogenous shock, thus eventually precipitating a crash. We also present computer experiments which in their aggregate behavior confirm th...

This paper presents an exclusive classification of the largest crashes in Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), SP500 and NASDAQ in the past century. Crashes are objectively defined as the top-rank filtered drawdowns (loss from the last local maximum to the next local minimum disregarding noise fluctuations), where the size of the filter is determined by the historical volatility of the index. It is shown that {\it all} crashes can be linked to either an external shock, {\it e...

This paper reviews some of the phenomenological models which have been introduced to incorporate the scaling properties of financial data. It also illustrates a microscopic model, based on heterogeneous interacting agents, which provides a possible explanation for the complex dynamics of markets' returns. Scaling and multi-scaling analysis performed on the simulated data is in good quantitative agreement with the empirical results.

We establish several new stylised facts concerning the intra-day seasonalities of stock dynamics. Beyond the well known U-shaped pattern of the volatility, we find that the average correlation between stocks increases throughout the day, leading to a smaller relative dispersion between stocks. Somewhat paradoxically, the kurtosis (a measure of volatility surprises) reaches a minimum at the open of the market, when the volatility is at its peak. We confirm that the dispersion ...

The world's stock markets display a strikingly suspicious pattern of overnight and intraday returns. Overnight returns to major stock market indices over the past few decades have been wildly positive, while intraday returns have been disturbingly negative. The cause of these astonishingly consistent return patterns is unknown. We highlight the features of these extraordinary patterns that have hindered the construction of any plausible innocuous explanation. We then use thos...

We develop a theoretical trading conditioning model subject to price volatility and return information in terms of market psychological behavior, based on analytical transaction volume-price probability wave distributions in which we use transaction volume probability to describe price volatility uncertainty and intensity. Applying the model to high frequent data test in China stock market, we have main findings as follows: 1) there is, in general, significant positive correl...

We investigate the random walk of prices by developing a simple model relating the properties of the signs and absolute values of individual price changes to the diffusion rate (volatility) of prices at longer time scales. We show that this benchmark model is unable to reproduce the diffusion properties of real prices. Specifically, we find that for one hour intervals this model consistently over-predicts the volatility of real price series by about 70%, and that this effect ...

This study delves into the temporal dynamics within the equity market through the lens of bond traders. Recognizing that the riskless interest rate fluctuates over time, we leverage the Black-Derman-Toy model to trace its temporal evolution. To gain insights from a bond trader's perspective, we focus on a specific type of bond: the zero-coupon bond. This paper introduces a pricing algorithm for this bond and presents a formula that can be used to ascertain its real value. By ...

Fat tails in financial time series and increase of stocks cross-correlations in high volatility periods are puzzling facts that ask for new paradigms. Both points are of key importance in fundamental research as well as in Risk Management (where extreme losses play a key role). In this paper we present a new model for an ensemble of stocks that aims to encompass in a unitary picture both these features. Equities are modelled as quasi random walk variables, where the non-Brown...