Global Events and the Stock Exchange Indices of Hong Kong and the Philippines: An Event Study

This study on global events and the stock exchange indices of Hong Kong and the Philippines is an event study on the impact of twelve (12) global events to the index returns of financial markets between a developed and a developing economy (the Hang Seng Index (HSI) and the Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi), respectively). Using judgmental sampling, 12 events from 2011 to 2021 were the defined events of this study. The results of the event study methodology showed that the Arab Spring had significant negative abnormal returns on both the HSI and the PSEi. Brexit only had significant negative abnormal returns on the PSEi. Consequently, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is more efficient than the Philippine Stock Exchange. This study concludes that portfolio diversification across different geographic markets may not always be effective. Furthermore, this study recommends interdisciplinary academic approaches into observations of investor behavior.