Halal Stock Designation and Impact on Price and Trading Volume

This paper examines the impact of the Malaysian Syariah Advisory Council’s (SAC) decision on stock eligibility. Specifically, we address four questions related to returns and trading volume of stocks in relation to the SAC’s decision to add or delete a stock to their list of halal stocks. Overall, our findings suggest that inclusions experience a positive impact while deletions negative. Our sample of 39 inclusions showed positive MCAR and increased trading volume. The price impact however was delayed with significant positive MCARs in the 30 and 60 day window periods following announcement. The impact on trading volume appears immediate but short lived. Our Sample of 21 stocks deleted from SAC list experienced negative MCAR and reduced trading volume. These were however statistically significant only in the 60 day window post announcement.