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Board leadership structure for Chinese public listed companies

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  • Yu, Mei
  • Ashton, John K.

Abstract

It is widely accepted that board leadership structure and whether the chairperson and CEO roles should be undertaken jointly or separately affects the performance of a firm. Despite this consensus, empirical evidence presents major uncertainties as to the direction and degree of this influence. This study contributes to this debate by examining the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance and the expense ratio, using propensity-score matching methods for Chinese PLCs from 2003–2010. It is reported that whilst CEO duality is not related to companies' profitability ratios, it is linked to a higher expense ratio compared to matched companies with a separate board leadership structure. This indicates that a separate board leadership structure is an effective corporate governance arrangement to reduce agency costs for Chinese PLCs.

Suggested Citation

  • Yu, Mei & Ashton, John K., 2015. "Board leadership structure for Chinese public listed companies," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 236-248.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:chieco:v:34:y:2015:i:c:p:236-248
    DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2015.01.010
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Board leadership structure; Firm performance; Agency costs; Propensity score matching; China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance
    • O16 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Financial Markets; Saving and Capital Investment; Corporate Finance and Governance
    • P34 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist Institutions and Their Transitions - - - Finance

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