Romanian Journal of Information Technology and Automatic Control / Vol. 35, No. 4, 2025

Slow-motion market: The lagging impact of ESG news on Romanian investors’ behavior

Loredana PAMFILE, Beatrice MILIK, Ella Magdalena CIUPERCĂ

Abstract:

This study examines the impact of ESG news sentiment on Romanian stock prices from 2019 to 2023, highlighting gaps in how an emerging market processes ESG-related information. The authors collected ESG-related web content through automated web scraping followed by manual data validation. Sentiment analysis was conducted in Python using the VADER model, and the results were linked to historical stock prices using regression analysis. The analysis revealed a delayed market response, with no significant effect on day t+1, but significant changes on days t+2 and t+3. Positive ESG news was linked to gradual increases in stock returns and reductions in trading volumes. The findings indicate inefficiencies in ESG information processing, highlight potential arbitrage opportunities, and underscore the need for better ESG disclosures and greater investor engagement.

Keywords:
ESG News, Web Scraping, Bucharest Stock Exchange, Emerging Market, Sentiment Scoring, Impact Investing, ESG Performance.

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CITE THIS PAPER AS:
Loredana PAMFILE, Beatrice MILIK, Ella Magdalena CIUPERCĂ, "Slow-motion market: The lagging impact of ESG news on Romanian investors’ behavior", Romanian Journal of Information Technology and Automatic Control, ISSN 1220-1758, vol. 35(4), pp. 51-62, 2025. https://doi.org/10.33436/v35i4y202504