Required

You are required to produce a report consisting of two parts.

In Part 1, you should explain the three forms of market efficiency put forward by Fama (1970).                                                                                                                                             (15 marks)

In Part 2 you should proceed with critically discussing the evidence for and against the theory that stock market share prices fully and fairly reflect all known information. Give your own reasoned evaluation of the balance of this evidence and your views on whether it is possible to exploit market inefficiencies to consistently make abnormal returns by trading in shares using publicly available information. Go on to explain the implications for investors and companies if it were concluded that the evidence supporting the efficient stock market hypothesis was very persuasive as far as past price and publicly available information is concerned.                                                     (85 marks)

Marking Scheme:

Part 1 (15 marks)

Part 2 (85 marks)

Total (100 marks)                                                      Assessment criteria

To obtain a good mark your assignment will need to set your discussion in a theoretical context and to demonstrate the following:

  • a wide range of reading and research was undertaken
  • an understanding of differing views and opinions
  • logical and relevant argument
  • appropriate presentation and clarity of writing
  • correct referencing

Your report should be 1500 words (high marks will depend on quality, not length). Marks may be lost for exceeding the limit as excessive material may not be marked.

When referring to material from books and articles, or when quoting directly, clear references must be made. Copying sentences and paragraphs from books, articles or any other source without identifying that source is plagiarism and subject to the sanctions set out in the university’s policy on