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Are ESG stocks safe-haven during COVID-19?

Author

Listed:
  • Ghulame Rubbaniy
  • Ali Awais Khalid
  • Muhammad Faisal Rizwan
  • Shoaib Ali

Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to investigate safe-haven properties of environmental, social and governance (ESG) stocks in global and emerging ESG stock markets during the times of COVID-19 so that portfolio managers and equity market investors could decide to use ESG stocks in their portfolio hedging strategies during times of health and market crisis similar to COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach - The study uses a wavelet coherence framework on four major ESG stock indices from global and emerging stock markets, and two proxies of COVID-19 fear over the period from 5 February 2020 to 18 March 2021. Findings - The results of the study show a positive co-movement of the global COVID-19 fear index (GFI) with ESG stock indices on the frequency band of 32 to 64 days, which confirms hedging and safe-haven properties of ESG stocks using the health fear proxy of COVID-19. However, the relationship between all indices and GFI is mixed and inconclusive on a frequency of 0–8 days. Further, the findings do not support the safe-haven characteristics of ESG indices using the market fear proxy (IDEMV index) of COVID-19. The robustness analysis using the CBOE VIX as a proxy of market fear supports that ESG indices do not possess safe-haven properties. The results of the study conclude that the safe-haven properties of ESG indices during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is contingent upon the proxy of COVID-19 fear. Practical implications - The findings have important implications for the equity investors and assetty managers to improve their portfolio performance by including ESG stocks in their portfolio choice during the COVID-19 pandemic and similar health crisis. However, their investment decisions could be affected by the choice of COVID-19 proxy. Originality/value - The authors believe in the originality of the paper due to following reasons. First, to the best of the knowledge, this is the first study investigating the safe-haven properties of ESG stocks. Second, the authors use both health fear (GFI) and market fear (IDEMV index) proxies of COVID-19 to compare whether safe-haven properties are characterized by health fear or market fear due to COVID-19. Finally, the authors use the wavelet coherency framework, which not only takes both time and frequency dimensions of the data into account but also remains unaffected by data stationarity and size issues.

Suggested Citation

  • Ghulame Rubbaniy & Ali Awais Khalid & Muhammad Faisal Rizwan & Shoaib Ali, 2021. "Are ESG stocks safe-haven during COVID-19?," Studies in Economics and Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 39(2), pages 239-255, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:sefpps:sef-08-2021-0320
    DOI: 10.1108/SEF-08-2021-0320
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bhattacherjee, Purba & Mishra, Sibanjan & Bouri, Elie, 2024. "Does asset-based uncertainty drive asymmetric return connectedness across regional ESG markets?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    2. Liu, Min, 2022. "The driving forces of green bond market volatility and the response of the market to the COVID-19 pandemic," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 288-309.
    3. Zynobia Barson & Kwame Simpe Ofori & Peterson Owusu Junior & Kwabena G. Boakye & George Oppong Appiagyei Ampong, 2024. "Time-varying Connectedness Between ESG Stocks and BRVM Traditional Stocks," Journal of Emerging Market Finance, Institute for Financial Management and Research, vol. 23(3), pages 306-335, September.
    4. Ali, Shoaib & Ijaz, Muhammad Shahzad & Yousaf, Imran, 2023. "Dynamic spillovers and portfolio risk management between defi and metals: Empirical evidence from the Covid-19," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    5. María Mar Miralles-Quirós & José Luis Miralles-Quirós, 2021. "Sustainable Finance and the 2030 Agenda: Investing to Transform the World," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-6, September.
    6. Bhattacherjee, Purba & Mishra, Sibanjan & Bouri, Elie & Wee, Jung Bum, 2024. "ESG, clean energy, and petroleum futures markets: Asymmetric return connectedness and hedging effectiveness," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    7. Alberto Barroso del Toro & Laura Vivas Crisol & Xavier Tort-Martorell, 2022. "Comparing the Impacts of Sustainability Narratives on American and European Energy Shareholders: A Multi-Event Study Analysing Reactions to News before and during COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-18, November.
    8. Ali, Shoaib & Naveed, Muhammad & Youssef, Manel & Yousaf, Imran, 2024. "FinTech-powered integration: Navigating the static and dynamic connectedness between GCC equity markets and renewable energy cryptocurrencies," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    9. Wang, Junkai & Qi, Baolei & Li, Yan & Hossain, Muhammad Istiaque & Tian, Haowen, 2024. "Does institutional commitment affect ESG performance of firms? Evidence from the United Nations principles for responsible investment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    VIX; Wavelet coherence; Safe-haven; COVID-19; ESG stocks; Global fear index; Infectious disease equity market volatility index; G01; G11; G15; M14;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G01 - Financial Economics - - General - - - Financial Crises
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G15 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - International Financial Markets
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility

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