Is the Impact of COVID-19 Significant in Determining Equity Market Integration? Insights from BRICS Economies

This article examined the impact of the unanticipated outbreak of global public health crisis, COVID-19 pandemic, on the equity market performances and on the degree of integration of these markets in BRICS bloc. The empirical analyses lend support to the weakened equity market integration in the BRICS economies amid the pandemic, and the key driving forces include the rate of inflation, the real rate of interest, real exchange rate and composite leading indicator in the long-run, and trade performance and composite leading indicator in the short-run. The implications on the one hand, indicate increased opportunities for international portfolio diversification, and on the other hand, suggest for controlling the macroeconomic uncertainties of inflation, interest rate and exchange rate fluctuations during global health crisis to promote stable economic conditions for ensuring equity market integration in the long-run.