Skopje, 22 September 2023

The National Bank Research Club held its 48th session. At the session, which was held virtually this time, the participants had an opportunity to see the presentation of the paper awarded with the Annual Prize for Young Researchers of the National Bank, titled Stock Returns, Risk, and Firm Characteristics of an Emerging Market: Evidence from the Macedonian Stock Exchange by Aleksandra Daneva.

The session was opened by the Vice Governor of the National Bank, Ana Mitreska. She pointed out that the National Bank through a larger number of activities and initiatives supports and stimulates the creative research work in the field of economics and finance. One of these tools is the Annual Prize for Young Researchers, which this year was awarded to Aleksandra Daneva, author of the paper which was presented at the 48th session of the Research Club. The paper is characterized by consistency of the theses and examines the relevant area that refers to the examination of the firm characteristics which affect the returns of the stocks that are traded and the modeling of the volatility index for the Macedonian Stock Exchange.

The author Daneva pointed out that this paper examines which firm characteristics impact stock returns and reflect the volatility index of the Macedonian Stock Exchange, which is on the rise. Moreover, the index returns and firm characteristics are compared with the developed country Slovenia, to see if emerging markets are significantly different from developed ones. The analysis of this paper is divided into three parts and is based on data from 2017-2021. The paper is available at the following link.

After the presentation, a discussion was opened between the participants in the session.

The Research Club is an open platform for presentation and consideration of research papers, especially in the field of monetary policy and macroeconomics. The sessions are attended by analysts and researchers from scientific and educational and financial institutions, students and other interested participants. The membership in the Club is of open character and can be made through a request for membership at the following e-mail: [email protected]. The Club members receive regular notifications on the sessions and activities of the Research Club.

The Club sessions are held four times a year. The National Bank announces a call to researchers to submit a paper, which can also be in a draft version. The papers are made in accordance with the trends and standards of modern research, i.e. with a solid empirical analysis and systematized research conclusions. The next session will be held in December this year.