Take two triangular arrays $X_{N,i}$ and $Y_{N,i}$ of random variables where $1 \le i \le N$. Suppose that the families $\{X_{N,i}\}$ and $\{Y_{N,i}\}$ are independent, and that the following conditions hold: - Each row is permutation invariant, that is for $N$ fixed and any $\sigma \in S_N$ $$ (X_{N,1},\ldots,X_{N,N}) \stackrel{d}{=} (X_{N,\sigma (1)},\ldots,X_{N,\sigma(N)}) $$ $$ (Y_{N,1},\ldots,Y_{N,N}) \stackrel{d}{=} (Y_{N,\sigma (1)},\ldots,Y_{N,\sigma(N)}) $$ - There are finite constants $a_n,b_n$ such that the sample moments converge in probability $$ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N X_{N,i}^n \xrightarrow{\mathcal{P}} a_n $$ $$ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N Y_{N,i}^n \xrightarrow{\mathcal{P}} b_n $$ Then is it true that the sample covariance converges in probability to $a_1b_1$? $$ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N X_{N,i}Y_{N,i} \xrightarrow{\mathcal{P}} a_1b_1 \ \ ? $$ I make no assumptions about the dependence within the two families, only that they are independent from one another. ---------- The motivation for the problem comes from the following observation. If the random variables have finite moments and if there were finite constants $a',b'$ such that $$ \mathbb{E}\left[ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N X_{N,i} \right] \to a' $$ $$ \mathbb{E}\left[ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N Y_{N,i} \right] \to b' $$ then by the permutation invariance of the families it follows that $$ \mathbb{E}\left[ \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N X_{N,i}Y_{N,i} \right] = \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N \mathbb{E}[X_{N,i}]\mathbb{E}[Y_{N,i}] $$ $$ = \frac1N \sum_{i=1}^N \mathbb{E}\left[\frac1N \sum_{j=1}^N X_{N,j}\right]\mathbb{E}\left[ \frac1N \sum_{k=1}^N Y_{N,k}\right] \to a'b' $$ I am asking if a similar phenomenon holds in the case where all quantities are described by convergence in probability rather than convergence of expectations.