Seasonality and Long-Term Nature of Equity Markets: Empirical Evidence from India

The research paper endeavors to investigate the presence of seasonal anomalies in the Indian equity market. It also aims to verify the notion that equity markets are for long-term investors. The study employs daily index data of Sensex, Bombay Stock Exchange, to understand its volatility for the period ranging from January 2001 to August 2020. To analyze the seasonal effects in the stock market of India, multiple regression techniques along with descriptive analysis, graphical analysis and various statistical tests are used. The study also employs the rolling returns at different time intervals in order to understand the underlying risks and volatility involved in equity returns. The results from the analysis reveal that daily and monthly seasonality is not present in Sensex returns i.e., investors cannot earn abnormal returns by timing their investment decisions. Hence, the major finding of this study is that the Indian stock market performance is random, and the returns are efficient. The other major conclusion of the research is that the equity returns are profitable in the long run providing investors a hope that they can make gains and compensate for the loss in one period by a superior performance in some other periods.