Pairs trading is a type of arbitrage investment strategy that buys an underpriced security and simultaneously sells an overpriced security. Since the 1980s, investors have recognized pairs trading as a promising arbitrage strategy that pursues absolute returns rather than relative profits. Thus, individual and institutional traders, as well as hedge fund traders in the financial markets, have an interest in developing a pairs trading strategy. This study proposes pairs trading rules (PTRs) created from a price ratio between securities (i.e., stock index futures) using rough set analysis. The price ratio involves calculating the closing price of one security and dividing it by the closing price of another security and generating Buy or Sell signals according to whether the ratio is increasing or decreasing. In this empirical study, we generate PTRs through rough set analysis applied to various technical indicators derived from the price ratio between KOSPI 200 and S&P 500 index futures. The proposed trading rules for pairs trading indicate high profits in the futures market.

Shadow banking in China has been growing rapidly; banks use wealth management products aggressively to evade regulatory constraints. The loan-to-deposit ratio or LDR targets both sides of the balance sheet; loans in terms of asset-side, and deposits in terms of liabilitiesside; banks needed to control and maintain both sides. Regulators restricted Chinese banks to maintain a 75% limit for their loan-depositratio. Banks’ needed to either lower their loans or increase the deposits; WMPs helped banks to evade this limit. Banks issue more WMPs to control and manage a 75% statutory ceiling LDR. This WMPs-LDR positive association disappeared post-2015 period. This study empirically examined how Chinese banks use WMPs issuance to avoid regulatory constraints. Quarterly panel data for 30 top Chinese banks were used by analyzing pre-2015 (during the 75% LDR limit) and post-2015 (after removal of the LDR limit). This study also performed fixed-effects model as recommended by the Hausman specification test, with feasible generalized least squares FGLS estimation technique. The results of this study show that for the pre-2015 period, Chinese banks use issuance of WMPs aggressively to manage their LDR limit; this WMPs-LDR relationship disappeared post-2015 period. Moreover, SMBs use WMPs more eagerly as compare to Big4 banks.