Volatility, Firm Size and Economic Growth: Evidence from Chinese Stock Market

Forecasting real economic growth by using the information contents of financial asset prices is one of the main themes in financial studies in recent years. Based on the micro-level stock data from Shenzhen Stock Exchange Market, the paper constructs a cross-section volatility measure using sample stocks, investigates the impact of stock price volatility on economic growth, and forecasts economic growth with stock prices volatility of different firm size. The empirical results indicate that stock price volatility is a good indicator for forecasting economic growth. The results also show that volatility of both large and small firms can be useful in forecasting economic growth. In addition, volatility of small firms can better predict economic growth.