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Rethinking capital structure decision and corporate social responsibility in response to COVID‐19

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  • He Huang
  • Ye Ye

Abstract

COVID‐19 has severely constricted global economic activities. This paper examines the joint effect of capital structure and corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities on firm risk during the COVID‐19 pandemic. We find that firms having excessive debt beyond the optimal level experienced high firm risk during the pandemic and the effect is more prevalent among firms with poor CSR performance. In contrast, firms with a debt level below the optimum are self‐protected regardless of their CSR practices. Our study provides businesses with insights on post‐pandemic directions of capital structure and CSR policies to build up sustainability and resilience in a volatile market.

Suggested Citation

  • He Huang & Ye Ye, 2021. "Rethinking capital structure decision and corporate social responsibility in response to COVID‐19," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(3), pages 4757-4788, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:61:y:2021:i:3:p:4757-4788
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.12740
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    3. Vishnu K. Ramesh & A. Athira, 2023. "Real effects of social trust on firm performance during COVID‐19," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(1), pages 671-693, January.
    4. Thng Peck-Ern Casandra & Wei-Theng Lau, 2023. "Corporate Leverage Decisions in Malaysian Property Sector: Before and During Pandemic," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(12), pages 1719-1733, December.
    5. Jaroslav Mazanec, 2023. "Capital Structure and Corporate Performance: An Empirical Analysis from Central Europe," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-19, April.
    6. Barbara Grabinska & Dorota Kedzior & Marcin Kedzior & Konrad Grabinski, 2021. "The Impact of CSR on the Capital Structure of High-Tech Companies in Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-20, May.
    7. Galya Taseva, 2023. "Dynamics of the debt burden of non-financial enterprises in Bulgaria during the period 2016-2020," Economic Thought journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 4, pages 380-407.
    8. Bai, Min & Ho, Ly, 2022. "Corporate social performance and firm debt levels: Impacts of the covid-19 pandemic and institutional environments," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 47(PB).
    9. Jędrzej Białkowski & Anna Sławik, 2022. "Does Companies’ ESG Performance Make a Difference for New Zealand’s Stock Market Investors during the COVID-19 Pandemic?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-12, November.
    10. David Benjamin Billedeau & Jeffrey Wilson & Naima Samuel, 2022. "From Responsibility to Requirement: COVID, Cars, and the Future of Corporate Social Responsibility in Canada," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-16, May.
    11. Suleman, Muhammad Tahir & Yaghoubi, Mona, 2022. "Infectious disease and corporate activities," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    12. Ravindra N. Shukla & Vishal Vyas & Animesh Chaturvedi, 2024. "Leverage adjustment analytics: effect of Covid-19 crisis on financial adjustments of Indian firms," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 48(2), pages 513-543, June.
    13. Ehsan Poursoleyman & Gholamreza Mansourfar & Mohammad Kabir Hassan & Saeid Homayoun, 2024. "Did Corporate Social Responsibility Vaccinate Corporations Against COVID-19?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(3), pages 525-551, January.

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