Due to the spread of the new coronavirus, the government issued a "request to refrain from going out" to maintain social distancing on February 2020, 2, and on April 17, 4, a "state of emergency" was issued simultaneously with the economic impact of the restaurant industry. Announced "Go To Campaign" for support. It is often reported that it is a contradictory policy to "recommend eating out while avoiding contact with people."The research group verified the impact of these measures on the stock prices of listed companies in the food service industry using a statistical analysis method (event study).

　As a result, there was a 2% “positive”* abnormal return (cumulative abnormal return) on the day of the “request to refrain from going out” announcement on February 17, and 1.3 business days later the cumulative abnormal return (total abnormal return for 10 business days). was about -10%.For investors in food service companies, the announcement of a "request to refrain from going out" was found to be "negative" news.

　On the other hand, on April 4, the day the “Go To Campaign” was announced, a “positive” abnormal return of more than 7% was seen, and after 2.5 business days, the average cumulative abnormal return (total abnormal return for 10 business days) was was around 10%. The "Go To Campaign" announcement turned out to be "positive" news.

　The study highlights the importance of government subsidies to support “in-person” industries that are economically vulnerable to such factors as lockdown policies during the pandemic.Since the corona disaster has lasted for more than two years, it is said that further research from a long-term perspective will be necessary as a future issue.

* [Editor's note] If the % is positive, the stock price will rise (=positive), and if it is negative, the share price will fall (=negative).

Paper information:[PLOS ONE] Self-restraint, subsidy, and stock market reactions to the coronavirus outbreak: Evidence from the Japanese restaurant industry