An Examination of Informed Trades in China’s Stock Market

The thesis mainly examines information-driven trading pattern and trading behavior in China's stock market using intraday high-frequency trading data spanning from 2012 to 2014. The first empirical chapter studies the intraday trading pattern in China's stock market. We identify generally similar trading phenomena that have been previously reported in other markets, that is, there is a U-shaped intraday pattern of trading volumes. We explore two main research questions associated with this phenomenon: the manifestation of it in other trading-volume-related variables (return, volatility, liquidity and price discovery) and the main driving forces that may explain this phenomenon. By examining high-frequency quote and trading data of all stocks that comprise the CSI300 index, we find that most trading-volume-related variables, such as volatility, liquidity and price discovery, all show similar U-shaped intraday patterns. This reveals that investors’ preference to trade during particular time periods (e.g. the opening and ending time of a day) have significant impact on other trading-volume-related variables. To further understand the driving forces behind the observed phenomenon, we also examine the intraday pattern of informed trading behavior and find that the probability of informed trading (PIN) as well as the price discovery (measured by Weighted Price Contribution, WPC) are also much higher at the beginning and ending period than during other time periods of a day. Moreover, a clear intraday momentum effect is also observed. Therefore, we argue that the observed U-shaped intraday trading pattern for the CSI300 stocks is mainly driven by the unbalanced information flow over time within a day. The second empirical chapter examines the information-driven trades and informed traders’ order size strategies in China’s stock market. We find the aggregate U-shaped informed trading is not only explained by the time-of-day effect but is also related to the order size strategy, which is shown by intraday variations in the composition of small, medium, and large trades. The evidence of information predictability from early morning to market close and from late afternoon to the next day provides additional insights into the intraday informed trading pattern. We identify the non-negligible price impact (PI) of large trades and propose a modified model, VDPIN-PI, that can better capture the trades with information advantage than the baseline model. Autocorrelation test and information advantage test are applied to ensure the robustness of our main results. The third empirical chapter focuses on the study of informed trading around earnings and M&A announcements in China's stock market. By adopting both indirect and direct informed trading measures, it is found that informed tradings are more pronounced before earnings announcements than before M&A announcements. We further investigate the relation between firm characteristics (size and profitability) and the level of informed tradings. Results show that smaller companies have more informed trading before both earnings announcements and M&A announcements. Companies of both high and low profitability show more informed trading than companies of medium profitability before earnings announcements. Nevertheless, only companies with poor financial performances have higher levels of informed trading before M&A announcements. Moreover, companies with higher level of informed trading seem to have less or even negative long term benefits from M&As on both stock price and financial performance. We argue that this could reveal that the initial motivation of mangers to launch M&A transactions is the gains from insider tradings instead of the long term interests of the companies. We conjecture that informed tradings prior to M&A announcements by small and non-profitable firms could be executed by actual insiders as a result of agency problem and weak market regulation in China

Does urbanization have spatial spillover effect on poverty reduction: empirical evidence from rural China

In light of a scarcity of research on the spatial effects of urbanization on poverty reduction, this study uses panel data on 30 provinces in China from 2009 to 2019 to construct a system of indices to assess poverty that spans the four dimensions of the economy, education, health, and living. We use the spatial autocorrelation test and the spatial Durbin model (SDM) to analyze the spatial effects of urbanization on poverty reduction in these different dimensions. The main conclusions are as follows: (a) China’s urbanization has the characteristics of spatial aggregation and a spatial spillover effect. (b) Different dimensions of poverty had the attributes of spatial agglomeration, and Moran’s index of a reduction in economic poverty was the highest. Under the SDM, the different dimensions of poverty also showed a significant positive spatial correlation. (c) Urbanization has a significant effect on poverty reduction along the dimensions of the economy, education, and living, but has little effect on reducing health poverty. It has a spatial spillover effect on poverty reduction in economic and living contexts. (d) There were spatial differences in the effect of urbanization on relieving economic and living-related poverty

Saikosaponin A Alleviates Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder through Downregulation of DAT and Enhancing BDNF Expression in Spontaneous Hypertensive Rats

The disturbed dopamine availability and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression are due in part to be associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In this study, we investigated the therapeutical effect of saikosaponin a (SSa) isolated from Bupleurum Chinese DC, against spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) model of ADHD. Methylphenidate and SSa were orally administered for 3 weeks. Activity was assessed by open-field test and Morris water maze test. Dopamine (DA) and BDNF were determined in specific brain regions. The mRNA or protein expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), dopamine transporter (DAT), and vesicles monoamine transporter (VMAT) was also studied. Both MPH and SSa reduced hyperactivity and improved the spatial learning memory deficit in SHRs. An increased DA concentration in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatum was also observed after treating with the SSa. The increased DA concentration may partially be attributed to the decreased mRNA and protein expression of DAT in PFC while SSa exhibited no significant effects on the mRNA expression of TH and VMAT in PFC of SHRs. In addition, BDNF expression in SHRs was also increased after treating with SSa or MPH. The obtained result suggested that SSa may be a potential drug for treating ADHD

Spatiotemporal Evolution and Complexity of Urban Networks in China, 1978–2019: An Enterprise Linkages Perspective

With the development of globalization and informatization, the relationships among cities have become closer, and a “network” paradigm in urban studies is gaining attention. To examine China’s urban network evolution in a long time series, we used flow-based data to measure enterprise linkages from 1978 to 2019. We investigated the spatiotemporal evolution and complexity characteristics of urban networks in China and arrived at the following conclusions. (1) Intercity enterprise linkages in China have been continuously strengthened. The scale and density of urban networks have increased rapidly. Although the distribution of node cities’ importance and influence has been significantly unbalanced, the degree of which has lessened over time. (2) Network density has significantly improved since 1978, gradually forming a monocentric (Beijing) radial pattern. From the beginning of the twenty-first century, the status of core nodes (e.g., Shanghai) has gradually become prominent. Finally, four vertices stood out in 2019, forming a stable diamond structure. The spatial connection flows of enterprises constituted the core networks with Beijing as the center, skeleton networks with trunk lines formed by subnodes, and regional networks covering a wide range of peripheral areas. (3) China’s urban networks were typically small-scale and scale-free. However, the scale-free characteristics were weakened after 2010. The overall scale gap of intercity enterprise linkages gradually narrowed, and the structure of urban networks became optimized. Meanwhile, the urban networks were heterogeneous. There were more cities with headquarter-branches and active investment behaviors, which had strong influence and control over networks, playing their functions of “broker” and “transfer.

Industrial Composition and Agglomeration Shadow: Evidence from China’s Large Urban Systems

New economic geography (NEG) raises the question why the “agglomeration shadow” effect is significant in some urban regions but not others. This study attempts to answer this question in the context of China by examining the impact of industrial composition of core cities on regional urban systems. Based on the model of urban location from NEG, this study attempts to examine the population growth of six core cities and their urban systems in China. We find services exert a significantly negative effect on market potential, while that of manufacturing is positive. The results are robust in different spatial scales and time spans. This suggests that strong centralizing and agglomerative effects of higher order service sector are more likely to cast an agglomeration shadow on noncore cities in China’s regional urban systems. The differences in industrial composition can explain why an urban region centered on a large core city like Beijing is more likely to cast an agglomeration shadow on its surrounding cities compared to the Shanghai-centered urban region. The findings hold important implications for uneven development of regional urban systems and construction of metropolitan areas in China

The Influencing Effects of Industrial Eco-Efficiency on Carbon Emissions in the Yangtze River Delta

A low-carbon economy is the most important requirement to realize high-quality integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta. Utilizing the following models: a super-efficiency slacks-based measure model, a spatio-temporal correlation model, a bivariate LISA model, a spatial econometric model, and a geographically weighted random forest model, this study measured urban industrial eco-efficiency (IEE) and then analyzed its influencing effects on carbon emission in the Yangtze River Delta from 2000 to 2017. The influencing factors included spatio-temporal correlation intensity, spatio-temporal association type, direct and indirect impacts, and local importance impacts. Findings showed that: (1) The temporal correlation intensity between IEE and scale efficiency (SE) and carbon emissions exhibited an inverted V-shaped variation trend, while the temporal correlation intensity between pure technical efficiency (PTE) and carbon emissions exhibited a W-shaped fluctuation trend. The negative spatial correlation between IEE and carbon emissions was mainly distributed in the developed cities of the delta, while the positive correlation was mainly distributed in central Anhui Province and Yancheng and Taizhou cities. The spatial correlation between PTE and carbon emissions exhibited a spatial pattern of being higher in the central part of the delta and lower in the northern and southern parts. The negative spatial correlation between SE and carbon emissions was mainly clustered in Zhejiang Province and scattered in Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, with the cities with positive correlations being concentrated around two locations: the junction of Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, and within central Jiangsu Province. (2) The direct and indirect effects of IEE on carbon emissions were significantly negative, indicating that IEE contributed to reducing carbon emissions. The direct impact of PTE on carbon emissions was also significantly negative, while its indirect effect was insignificant. Both the direct and indirect effects of SE on carbon emissions were significantly negative. (3) It was found that the positive effect of IEE was more likely to alleviate the increase in carbon emissions in northern Anhui City. Further, PTE was more conducive to reducing the increase in carbon emissions in northwestern Anhui City, southern Zhejiang City, and in other cities including Changzhou and Wuxi. Finally, it was found that SE played a relatively important role in reducing the increase in carbon emissions only in four cities: Changzhou, Suqian, Lu’an, and Wenzhou

Development Zones and Their Surrounding Host Cities in China: Isolation and Mutually Beneficial Interactions

The construction of development zones is an important strategic measure for China to attract foreign investment and open up more extensively to the outside world; for this reason, such zones are also of great significance to China’s regional development. Although the economic effects of development zones have received extensive attention from scholars, the interaction between the development zone and the host city that surrounds it has, to date, remained unexamined. To fill this gap, this research constructed a panel measurement analysis framework and selected 46 of China’s national development zones established from 2004 to 2018 as study samples and used Granger causality test method to reveal the causal relationship between the total factor productivity of the development zones and their surrounding host cities. The consequences exhibited a long-term causality between the total factor productivity of the development zones and that of the host cities in all the panels. Short-term causality, however, was only identified in the eastern and western area panels. The development zone is shown to significantly promote the development of its host city, albeit with a certain lag effect; conversely, the support function provided by the host city to the development zone was found to remain weak. Our research results provide a new perspective on realizing a mutually beneficial interaction between development zones and their host cities

The Transition Mechanism and Revitalization Path of Rural Industrial Land from a Spatial Governance Perspective: The Case of Shunde District, China

The transition of rural industrial land has a critical role to play in rural revitalization. The study of rural spatial governance is an important starting point for analyzing the processes and exploring the paths through which the transition of rural industrial land takes place. This study takes the case of Shunde District, China, a typical semi-urbanized area, as its research object and constructs an analytical framework for rural industrial land transition based on spatial governance; it uses this case to conduct an analysis of the spatiotemporal processes and dilemmas involved in rural industrial land transition. Hengding Industrial Park is taken as a specific example to study how the processes and mechanisms involved in the transition of rural industrial land work in practice from a spatial governance perspective, and the path of rural revitalization based on rural spatial governance is discussed. The conclusions are as follows: (1) the fragmentation of rural space, the difficulty of renewing rural industrial land, the chaos of ownership, and the incomplete mechanism of the differentiation and game of multiple subjects, are the main obstacles in the process of rural industrial land transition in Shunde District; (2) since the 1990s, the rural industrial land dominant morphology—including quantity, structure, and so on—and the recessive morphology, including property rights, organizational systems, and input–output efficiency, have all undergone significant changes; (3) the comprehensive governance of rural space under the analytical framework of “matter-ownership-organization,” is an important starting point for analyzing the process of transition of rural industrial land. The “top-down” and “bottom-up” approaches, combining rural spatial governance strategy and the effective participation of multiple subjects, are important means of promoting the transition of rural industrial land; (4) rural spatial governance is conducive to promoting the transition of rural land use and the healthy development of rural space. The experience of semi-urbanized regions with rural revitalization is of vital significance for other regions

Response Patterns of Vegetation Phenology along Urban-Rural Gradients in Urban Areas of Different Sizes

On the basis of MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index time series data and multisource data, such as nighttime light data and China City Statistical Yearbook data, we investigated the differences in vegetation phenology along urban-rural gradients in urban areas of different sizes between coastal and inland cities in Liaoning Province, China. The results showed that the following: (1) the iterative extraction of urban built-up areas using the threshold method based on nighttime light data combined with the definition of urban built-up areas had high accuracy. (2) Additionally, we found that the start of the growing season (SOS) in Liaoning Province occurred between day 100 and day 180, while the end of the growing season (EOS) occurred between days 260 and 330. The difference in the SOS between coastal cities (i.e., Dalian, Yingkou, Panjin, Jinzhou, Huludao, and Dandong) and inland cities (i.e., Chaoyang, Fuxin, Tieling, Shenyang, Fushun, Liaoyang, Benxi, and Anshan) was 1.70 days. However, the difference in the EOS was more significant, i.e., the EOS in coastal cities occurred 4.47 days later than that in the inland cities. (3) In urban areas of different sizes, the ∆SOS and ∆EOS of inland cities had negative correlations with urban size. Specifically, when the urban size increased 10-fold, the ∆SOS and ∆EOS advanced by 10.03 and 5.71 days, respectively. In contrast, the ∆SOS and ∆EOS of coastal cities had positive and negative correlations with the urban size, respectively. Specifically, when urban size increased 10-fold, ∆SOS was delayed by 11.29 days while EOS was advanced by 8.83 days