Spillovers and hedging effectiveness between oil and US equity sectors: Evidence from the COVID pre- and post-vaccination phases

Abstract

We examine the return and volatility transmission between oil and US equity sectors during three periods: the pre-COVID-19 phase, COVID-19 pre-vaccination phase, and COVID-19 post-vaccination phase. We show that the return and volatility spillovers between oil and US equity sectors vary across these three phases. The highest return connectedness is observed during the post-vaccination phase. The volatility spillover is highest from the majority of sectors to oil market in the COVID-19 pre-vaccination phase. The volatility transmission from oil to US equities during COVID-19 is weak. Moreover, our optimal weights estimations suggest that investors should decrease their exposures in US equities for the portfolio of oil-equity sectors in the COVID-19 post-vaccination phase. Finally, hedging cost is lowest, and hedging effectiveness is highest during the post-vaccination phase. Our findings provide valuable insights to portfolio managers and investors regarding portfolio diversification, hedging, and forecasting during health crises and subsequent recovery phases.