Zeeshan Ahmed

This study examines the dynamic connections and interdependencies of financial markets across developed and emerging economies from 2010 to 2023. This study seeks to address this gap by analyzing the interconnectedness of financial markets in both developed and developing nations, employing the Granger causality test, the DCC-GARCH model, and the Diebold-Yilmaz methodology. The analysis reveals a substantial bi-directional positive correlation between the financial markets of advanced and emerging economies. The study employs the DCC GARCH approach, revealing that the connections between financial integration in established and emerging nations demonstrate significant volatility spillovers. Moreover, the t-DCC model computes volatilities and correlations unconditionally, indicating that the unconditional volatility across all markets is approximately one, denoting a significant level of integration, which leads to heightened volatility in both established and emerging markets. The Diebold and Yilmaz Connectedness test has clarified the degree of interconnectedness among various financial markets. The results indicate that while a substantial degree of correlation exists, the intensity of these relationships varies across different market circumstances and timeframes. These findings assert that financial integration significantly impacts economic growth, as demonstrated in this study. The integration of financial components into various investment portfolios may enhance risk-adjusted returns, particularly under sustainable investing paradigms.

The current research aims to study the combined effect of micro-economic factor internal cash flow (CF) andmacro-economic factor monetary policy on investment behavior of non-financial firms listed on Pakistan StockExchange over the period of 2010-2020. Dynamic panel model is used in the study for empirical testing of thehypotheses. One-step and two step system with Quintile regression GMM estimation techniques were applied forempirically testing of hypothesis. Data were collected from secondary sources through company’s annualpublished and audited financial statements and from company’s website of 265 non-financial firms Pakistan. Theresults identify cash flow has an inverse relationship with investment of firms in one step system GMM i.e. simpleregression. However, cash flow tends to increase the level of investment in all other regression models. Thecontractionary monetary policy would likely to decrease the investment. Cash flow decreases the investment offirms in lower quintile of firms as compared to high quintiles. Monetary policy decrease the investment in lowerquintiles but this relationship tends to be positive when firm move towards high quintiles of firm investment. Themagnitude of cash flow and monetary policy varies in all quintiles of firm investment. Overall, the results areinconclusive across all the level. This study suggested that financial managers should manage internal cash flowsto increase cash reserves in order to meet capital expenditures and project’s needs of non-financial firms inPakistan.

This study aims to examine the direct and indirect links between behavioral biases and investor’s investment decisions via the mediating role of risk perception through structural equation modeling. The study is conducted among individual investors who are engaged in investment for several years in Pakistan Stock Exchange. Purposive sampling technique was used for data collection and the sample size was consisted of 450 questionnaires. The findings contribute that risk perception mediates between blue-chip stocks and investment decisions. Furthermore, risk perception does not play the mediating role between herding bias, disposition effect, and investment decisions. However, the disposition effect has a strong direct relationship with risk perception. The study is beneficial to individual investors who can make investment decisions by self-estimation rather than to follow the others’ opinion. The proper training and education to the investors is also an appropriate path to overcome these biases. Risk is the major factor that discourages investment decisions but blue-chip stocks are a major risk eliminating factor while building investment decisions. Most of the prior studies focused on behavioral biases and investment decisions of individual investors but this study contributed to the mediating effect of risk perception. Human capital, anomalies, computer literacy, and artificial technology could also be used as a mediator and moderator for future orientation.

Many critical decisions about an employee’s innovative performance are significantly based on the training results, as they are accountable for a variety of behavioral-related consequences. Training is among the most important human resource management strategies. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between employees’ perceptions of training and their innovative behavior in the Malaysian SME sector, as well as the mediating effect of affective and calculative commitment on this relationship. Structured questionnaires were used to collect the data. A total of 635 employees from 200 SMEs were selected through a stratified random sampling method, and structural equation modeling was applied to test the relationship. The findings of the study supported the hypothesized relationships, as training in Malaysia significantly engaged SME employees in innovative behavior. Furthermore, the study discovered that affective and calculative commitment have partial mediating effects on the association between training and innovative behavior. In the context of the SME sector, theoretical and managerial implications have been addressed. The originality of the study is that it examines the relationship between employees’ perceptions of training and their innovative behavior in SMEs. The relationship was measured using a multidimensional approach in the study. The research also adds to the body of knowledge by identifying the mediating effect of affective and calculative commitment.

The study is an attempt to find the reasons for biased behavior of overconfident managers while making financial decisions on behalf of shareholders. The study further seeks the ways to resolve the problems faced by firms due to such biased decision-making. For this purpose, quantitative research method is used to uncover the new information for better understanding of study. The comparative analysis has been done through survey-based data collected from executives/managers of firms listed on Pakistan Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange. The results indicate that overconfidence bias plays a significant role in managerial decisions for Pakistan compared with U.S. managers. This study applied mediation and moderation tests and found the significant mediating role of risk perception for overconfidence bias and manager decisions. The study further checked moderating role of cultural value, that is, the role of uncertainty avoidance between overconfidence bias of managers and risk perception. Hence, the role of cognitive biases and bounded rationality is undeniable for managerial decision-making and ultimate behavioral cost that firms have to pay due to undesired outcomes of situations. Consequently, this study has reached to extract the hidden facts and solutions to the observed issues for developed and emerging economy’s firms through cultural differences.

We investigate the impact of stock return volatility on different capital structure measures of nonfinancial firms in a dynamic panel model. Two‐step system generalized method of moment dynamic panel estimator is applied to nonfinancial sector's data from Pakistan Stock Exchange over the period 2001–2014. The results imply that stock return volatility has a significant negative impact on book leverage and long‐term market leverage ratios. However, stock return volatility causes the increase in total market leverage ratios. Moreover, book leverage and long‐term market leverage of firms decrease as a result of an increase in stock return volatility in different classification of firms. Conversely, stock return volatility has a significant positive impact on total market leverage ratios in those classifications of firms. Capital structure decisions are more sensitive to stock return volatility as default risk increases. Firms significantly go for the reduction in their debt financing due to high stock returns volatility and to avoid from possible consequences of default. The results are robust to alternative measures such as cash flow volatility and earnings volatility.