This research contributes to the much-debated literature existing on the relationship between the economy, merger and acquisitions (M&A), and investors’ behaviour by empirically examining the relationship between aggregate M&A transactions, Real GDP and the stock market in the top nine countries with respect to M&A activity globally from the period 1999-2018. Interestingly, according to the cross-sectional dependence and slope heterogeneity tests conducted, the research finds that when a specific country's stock market, Real GDP or M&A activity is affected or influenced in some way, this may also have an affect or influence on the other countries considered in this research as well. Each of the nine countries have some common economic characteristics. Additionally, each country has its system with reference to how the stock market index(s), economic activity and M&A activities influence each other and operate individually. This indicates that an economic relationship between the variables in one country may not be replicated by the others. Furthermore, in a country-by-country causality analysis using the Toda and Yamamoto (1995) approach, the research finds considerable evidence in support of the behavioural school of thought where investors’ behaviour and M&A activity seem to influence each other. Out of the nine countries investigated, six countries support the behavioural school of thought, i.e., show strong to moderate causality between M&A activity (number or value) and stock market price index. On the other hand, with reference to the neoclassical theory, surprisingly, there seems to exist a relationship between M&A activity and economic activity where M&A activity (number or value) leads economic activity in two out of the nine countries investigated. Finally, the research also suggests that economic activity seems to have an impact on how investors behave in six out of the nine countries investigated.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uottawa.ca/oai:ruor.uottawa.ca:10393/39668 |
| Date | 27 September 2019 |
| Creators | Gandotra, Vikrant |
| Contributors | Saadi, Samir |
| Publisher | Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa |
| Source Sets | Université d’Ottawa |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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