We use a general Markov switching model to examine the relationships between returns over three different asset classes: financial assets (U.S. stocks and Treasury bonds), commodities (oil and gold) and real estate assets (U.S. Case-Shiller index). We confirm the existence of two distinct...

We investigate the effects of S&P's sovereign re-ratings on the higher moments of equity market returns over recent financial crises. Using a set of intraday stock market index prices and sovereign credit ratings for a sample of 36 countries which experienced sovereign rating changes over the...