The effects of COVID-19 pandemic on Western Balkan financial markets

At the end of 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak occurred in Wuhan, China, from where it spread to Europe and all over the world. Currently, this pandemic forced almost all countries of the world to shutter lives into their homes. The rapid rates of infection spread and the number of deaths in the world have caused a decrease in the financial markets. Increasing incidents and deaths have made instability in the financial market uncertain. This study investigated the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic on the stock markets in Balkan countries. As the Balkan region concerns, there are two countries, Kosovo and Albania, that have no stock exchanges. This study has covered the analysis of the countries of the Balkan region that already have a stock exchange. The study analyzed the daily stock market data between January 01, 2020, and March 31, 2020, and the daily COVID-19 cases and death rates. The data obtained for the specific dates have been examined on the basis of the movements and effects of COVID-19 and the Balkan stock exchange. The results revealed that the stock exchanges in the Balkan countries are affected at the same rate as the exchanges of other countries. These thoughts and insecurities occur according to the news and human deaths reported in the news.