arXiv subjects

Carsten H. Chong

Publications and source records attributed to Carsten H. Chong.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Likelihood asymptotics of stationary Gaussian arrays

This paper develops an asymptotic likelihood theory for triangular arrays of stationary Gaussian time series depending on a multidimensional unknown parameter. We give sufficient conditions for the associated sequence of statistical models to be locally asymptotically normal in Le Cam's sense, which in particular implies the asymptotic efficiency of the maximum likelihood estimator. Unique features of the array setting covered by our theory include potentially nondiagonal rate matrices as well as spectral densities that satisfy different power-law bounds at different frequencies and may fail to be uniformly integrable. To illustrate our theory, we study efficient estimation for Gaussian processes sampled at high frequency and for a class of autoregressive models with moderate deviations from a unit root.

math.ST↗

arXiv2025

Asymptotic Expansions for High-Frequency Option Data

We derive a nonparametric higher-order asymptotic expansion for small-time changes of conditional characteristic functions of Itô semimartingale increments. The asymptotics setup is of joint type: both the length of the time interval of the increment of the underlying process and the time gap between evaluating the conditional characteristic function are shrinking. The spot semimartingale characteristics of the underlying process as well as their spot semimartingale characteristics appear as leading terms in the derived asymptotic expansions. The analysis applies to a general class of Itô semimartingales that includes in particular Lévy-driven SDEs and time-changed Lévy processes. The asymptotic expansion results are subsequently used to construct a test for whether volatility jumps are of finite or infinite variation. In an application to high-frequency data of options written on the S\&P 500 index, we find evidence for infinite variation volatility jumps.

q-fin.ST↗

arXiv2024

When Frictions are Fractional: Rough Noise in High-Frequency Data

The analysis of high-frequency financial data is often impeded by the presence of noise. This article is motivated by intraday return data in which market microstructure noise appears to be rough, that is, best captured by a continuous-time stochastic process that locally behaves as fractional Brownian motion. Assuming that the underlying efficient price process follows a continuous Itô semimartingale, we derive consistent estimators and asymptotic confidence intervals for the roughness parameter of the noise and the integrated price and noise volatilities, in all cases where these quantities are identifiable. In addition to desirable features such as serial dependence of increments, compatibility between different sampling frequencies and diurnal effects, the rough noise model can further explain divergence rates in volatility signature plots that vary considerably over time and between assets.

math.ST↗

arXiv2024

Short-time expansion of characteristic functions in a rough volatility setting with applications

We derive a higher-order asymptotic expansion of the conditional characteristic function of the increment of an Itô semimartingale over a shrinking time interval. The spot characteristics of the Itô semimartingale are allowed to have dynamics of general form. In particular, their paths can be rough, that is, exhibit local behavior like that of a fractional Brownian motion, while at the same time have jumps with arbitrary degree of activity. The expansion result shows the distinct roles played by the different features of the spot characteristics dynamics. As an application of our result, we construct a nonparametric estimator of the Hurst parameter of the diffusive volatility process from portfolios of short-dated options written on an underlying asset.

q-fin.ST↗

arXiv2024

Rate-optimal estimation of mixed semimartingales

Consider the sum $Y=B+B(H)$ of a Brownian motion $B$ and an independent fractional Brownian motion $B(H)$ with Hurst parameter $H\in(0,1)$. Even though $B(H)$ is not a semimartingale, it was shown in [\textit{Bernoulli} \textbf{7} (2001) 913--934] that $Y$ is a semimartingale if $H>3/4$. Moreover, $Y$ is locally equivalent to $B$ in this case, so $H$ cannot be consistently estimated from local observations of $Y$. This paper pivots on another unexpected feature in this model: if $B$ and $B(H)$ become correlated, then $Y$ will never be a semimartingale, and $H$ can be identified, regardless of its value. This and other results will follow from a detailed statistical analysis of a more general class of processes called \emph{mixed semimartingales}, which are semiparametric extensions of $Y$ with stochastic volatility in both the martingale and the fractional component. In particular, we derive consistent estimators and feasible central limit theorems for all parameters and processes that can be identified from high-frequency observations. We further show that our estimators achieve optimal rates in a minimax sense.

math.ST↗

arXiv2024

A nonparametric test for rough volatility

We develop a nonparametric test for deciding whether volatility of an asset follows a standard semimartingale process, with paths of finite quadratic variation, or a rough process with paths of infinite quadratic variation. The test utilizes the fact that volatility is rough if and only if volatility increments are negatively autocorrelated at high frequencies. It is based on the sample autocovariance of increments of spot volatility estimates computed from high-frequency asset return data. By showing a feasible CLT for this statistic under the null hypothesis of semimartingale volatility paths, we construct a test with fixed asymptotic size and an asymptotic power equal to one. The test is derived under very general conditions for the data-generating process. In particular, it is robust to jumps with arbitrary activity and to the presence of market microstructure noise. In an application of the test to SPY high-frequency data, we find evidence for rough volatility.

math.ST↗

arXiv2024

Volatility of Volatility and Leverage Effect from Options

We propose model-free (nonparametric) estimators of the volatility of volatility and leverage effect using high-frequency observations of short-dated options. At each point in time, we integrate available options into estimates of the conditional characteristic function of the price increment until the options' expiration and we use these estimates to recover spot volatility. Our volatility of volatility estimator is then formed from the sample variance and first-order autocovariance of the spot volatility increments, with the latter correcting for the bias in the former due to option observation errors. The leverage effect estimator is the sample covariance between price increments and the estimated volatility increments. The rate of convergence of the estimators depends on the diffusive innovations in the latent volatility process as well as on the observation error in the options with strikes in the vicinity of the current spot price. Feasible inference is developed in a way that does not require prior knowledge of the source of estimation error that is asymptotically dominating.

econ.EM↗