Can jumps improve the futures margin level? An empirical study based on an SE-SVCJ-GPD model

Abstract

In addition to the characteristics of leptokurtic fat-tailed distribution, financial sequences also exhibit typical volatility and jumps. Moreover, jumps exhibit self-exciting and clustering characteristics under extreme events. However, studies on dynamic margin levels often ignore jumps. In this study, we combine the self-exciting stochastic volatility with correlated jumps (SE-SVCJ) model with a generalized Pareto distribution (GPD) to measure the optimal margin level for the stock index futures market. Value at risk (VaR) is estimated and forecasted using the SE-SVCJ-GPD, SVCJ-GPD, and generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity with GPD (GARCH-GPD) models. SE-SVCJ-GPD can undertake more risks in the long or short trading position of stock index futures contracts. Moreover, the backtesting experiment results show that the SE-SVCJ-GPD model provides a more accurate margin level forecast than the other methods in both positions. This study’s findings have practical significance and theoretical value for assessing the level of risk and taking corresponding risk-prevention measures.