IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v66y2026i1p695-721.html

Climate Risk Exposure and Corporate Internationalisation: Evidence From China

Author

Listed:
  • Fenghua Wen
  • Jinmei Ju

Abstract

This paper focuses on assessing how climate risk exposure influences corporate strategic decisions, especially the internationalisation strategy. Drawing upon prior studies, we employ textual analysis in this paper to measure firm‐level climate risk exposure. Empirical analyses reveal a negative impact of climate risk exposure on firms' internationalisation. After conducting robustness tests, the negative relationship between climate risk exposure and internationalisation persists. Specifically, the primary channels identified are the deterioration of the financing capacity and reduced risk‐taking propensity. In addition, this relationship is more significant among non‐state‐owned firms, firms with weaker industry competition, and firms with lower ESG scores.

Suggested Citation

  • Fenghua Wen & Jinmei Ju, 2026. "Climate Risk Exposure and Corporate Internationalisation: Evidence From China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 66(1), pages 695-721, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:66:y:2026:i:1:p:695-721
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.70128
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.70128
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.70128?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Zhou, Mengling & Jiang, Kangqi & Chen, Zhongfei, 2022. "Temperature and corporate risk taking in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    2. Mbanyele, William & Muchenje, Linda Tinofirei, 2022. "Climate change exposure, risk management and corporate social responsibility: Cross-country evidence," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    3. Child, John & Rodrigues, Suzana B., 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Firms: A Case for Theoretical Extension?1," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(3), pages 381-410, November.
    4. Ahmad, Muhammad Farooq & Aktas, Nihat & Croci, Ettore, 2023. "Climate risk and deployment of corporate resources to working capital," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    5. Cull, Robert & Li, Wei & Sun, Bo & Xu, Lixin Colin, 2015. "Government connections and financial constraints: Evidence from a large representative sample of Chinese firms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 271-294.
    6. Rao, Sandeep & Koirala, Santosh & Thapa, Chandra & Neupane, Suman, 2022. "When rain matters! Investments and value relevance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    7. Mike W Peng & Denis Y L Wang & Yi Jiang, 2008. "An institution-based view of international business strategy: a focus on emerging economies," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(5), pages 920-936, July.
    8. Lai, Shaojie & Yang, Laifeng & Wang, Qing & Anderson, Hamish D., 2023. "Judicial independence and corporate innovation: Evidence from the establishment of circuit courts," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    9. Fenghua Wen & Longhao Xu & Bin Chen & Xiaohua Xia & Jinyi Li, 2020. "Heterogeneous Institutional Investors, Short Selling and Stock Price Crash Risk: Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(12), pages 2812-2825, September.
    10. Kafouros, Mario I. & Buckley, Peter J. & Clegg, Jeremy, 2012. "The effects of global knowledge reservoirs on the productivity of multinational enterprises: The role of international depth and breadth," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(5), pages 848-861.
    11. Yadong Luo & Rosalie L Tung, 2007. "International expansion of emerging market enterprises: A springboard perspective," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 38(4), pages 481-498, July.
    12. Li, Yunhe & Zhang, Zhaolong, 2023. "Corporate climate risk exposure and capital structure: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    13. Christopher S. Armstrong & Alan D. Jagolinzer & David F. Larcker, 2010. "Chief Executive Officer Equity Incentives and Accounting Irregularities," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 48(2), pages 225-271, May.
    14. Huynh, Thanh D. & Nguyen, Thu Ha & Truong, Cameron, 2020. "Climate risk: The price of drought," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    15. Henry He Huang & Joseph Kerstein & Chong Wang, 2018. "The impact of climate risk on firm performance and financing choices: An international comparison," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 49(5), pages 633-656, July.
    16. Zhenzhen Xie & Jiatao Li, 2018. "Exporting and innovating among emerging market firms: The moderating role of institutional development," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 49(2), pages 222-245, February.
    17. Symeonidou, Noni & Bruneel, Johan & Autio, Erkko, 2017. "Commercialization strategy and internationalization outcomes in technology-based new ventures," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 302-317.
    18. E. Somanathan & Rohini Somanathan & Anant Sudarshan & Meenu Tewari, 2021. "The Impact of Temperature on Productivity and Labor Supply: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(6), pages 1797-1827.
    19. Wu, Baohui & Wen, Fenghua & Zhang, Yun & Huang, Zhijian (James), 2024. "Climate risk and the systemic risk of banks: A global perspective," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    20. Glen, Jack & Lee, Kevin & Singh, Ajit, 2001. "Persistence of profitability and competition in emerging markets," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 247-253, August.
    21. Hainmueller, Jens, 2012. "Entropy Balancing for Causal Effects: A Multivariate Reweighting Method to Produce Balanced Samples in Observational Studies," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(1), pages 25-46, January.
    22. Kai Xu & Michael A. Hitt, 2020. "The international expansion of family firms: The moderating role of internal financial slack and external capital availability," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 37(1), pages 127-153, March.
    23. Nora Pankratz & Rob Bauer & Jeroen Derwall, 2023. "Climate Change, Firm Performance, and Investor Surprises," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(12), pages 7352-7398, December.
    24. Lin, Wen-Ting, 2012. "Family ownership and internationalization processes: Internationalization pace, internationalization scope, and internationalization rhythm," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 47-56.
    25. Atanas Mihov & Andy Naranjo, 2019. "Corporate internationalization, subsidiary locations, and the cost of equity capital," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(9), pages 1544-1565, December.
    26. Fard, Amirhossein & Javadi, Siamak & Kim, Incheol, 2020. "Environmental regulation and the cost of bank loans: International evidence," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    27. Merkoulova, Yulia & Zivanovic, Branislav, 2022. "Financial constraints and financing sources in mergers and acquisitions," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    28. Claudia Buch & Iris Kesternich & Alexander Lipponer & Monika Schnitzer, 2014. "Financial constraints and foreign direct investment: firm-level evidence," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 150(2), pages 393-420, May.
    29. Wang, Jiawei (Brooke), 2023. "Natural disasters and firm leasing: A collateral channel," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    30. Zhu, Bo & Hou, Rui, 2022. "Carbon risk and dividend policy: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    31. Charles J. Hadlock & Joshua R. Pierce, 2010. "New Evidence on Measuring Financial Constraints: Moving Beyond the KZ Index," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(5), pages 1909-1940.
    32. Ajai S Gaur & Xufei Ma & Zhujun Ding, 2018. "Home country supportiveness/unfavorableness and outward foreign direct investment from China," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 49(3), pages 324-345, April.
    33. Runhui Lin & Fei Li & Adedigba Olawoyin, 2020. "CEO overconfidence and firm internationalization: the moderating role of experience and managerial discretion," Nankai Business Review International, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 11(4), pages 597-616, June.
    34. Lin, Boqiang & Wu, Nan, 2023. "Climate risk disclosure and stock price crash risk: The case of China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 21-34.
    35. Tim Loughran & Bill Mcdonald, 2011. "When Is a Liability Not a Liability? Textual Analysis, Dictionaries, and 10‐Ks," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(1), pages 35-65, February.
    36. Chen, Xia & Fu, Qiang & Chang, Chun-Ping, 2021. "What are the shocks of climate change on clean energy investment: A diversified exploration," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    37. Rui Albuquerque & Yrjö Koskinen & Chendi Zhang, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Risk: Theory and Empirical Evidence," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(10), pages 4451-4469, October.
    38. James Heckman, 2013. "Sample selection bias as a specification error," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 31(3), pages 129-137.
    39. Zhang, Yun & Liu, Yun & Tang, Yicheng & Gao, Qun, 2024. "Large shareholders' stock selling and corporate performance: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    40. Xiao, Simon Shufeng & Jeong, Insik & Moon, Jon Jungbien & Chung, Chris Changwha & Chung, Jaiho, 2013. "Internationalization and Performance of Firms in China: Moderating Effects of Governance Structure and the Degree of Centralized Control," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 118-137.
    41. Fang, Fang, 2023. "Corporate innovation and internationalization: Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    42. Rui Xu & Liuyang Ren, 2025. "Natural Disaster, Tax Avoidance, and Corporate Pollution Emissions: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 197(1), pages 195-217, February.
    43. Gu, Grace Weishi & Hale, Galina, 2023. "Climate risks and FDI," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    44. Viet Anh Dang & Ning Gao & Tiancheng Yu, 2023. "Climate Policy Risk and Corporate Financial Decisions: Evidence from the NO x Budget Trading Program," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(12), pages 7517-7539, December.
    45. Wang, Yizhong & Chen, Carl R. & Huang, Ying Sophie, 2014. "Economic policy uncertainty and corporate investment: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 227-243.
    46. Elosge, Corinna & Oesterle, Michael-Joerg & Stein, Christina M. & Hattula, Stefan, 2018. "CEO succession and firms’ internationalization processes: Insights from German companies," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 367-379.
    47. Zhu, Bo & Zhao, Yue, 2022. "Carbon risk and the cost of bank loans: Evidence from China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    48. Chen, Xing & Huang, Zhijian (James) & Li, Zhuo & Wen, Fenghua, 2025. "Impact from a distance: Emotionally attached-place disasters and corporate risk-taking," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    49. Yuan, Rongli & Sun, Jian & Cao, Feng, 2016. "Directors' and officers' liability insurance and stock price crash risk," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 173-192.
    50. Sun, Wenbin & Price, Joseph & Ding, Yuan, 2019. "The longitudinal effects of internationalization on firm performance: The moderating role of marketing capability," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 326-337.
    51. Wen, Fenghua & Li, Cui & Sha, Han & Shao, Liuguo, 2021. "How does economic policy uncertainty affect corporate risk-taking? Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).
    52. Weilei (Stone) Shi & Sunny Li Sun & Daying Yan & Zhu Zhu, 2017. "Institutional fragility and outward foreign direct investment from China," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(4), pages 452-476, May.
    53. Fenghua Wen & Longhao Xu & Bin Chen & Xiaohua Xia & Jinyi Li, 2020. "Heterogeneous Institutional Investors, Short Selling and Stock Price Crash Risk: Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(12), pages 2812-2825, September.
    54. Zhang, Guiling & Wang, Linjiang & Guo, Fei & Yang, Guochao, 2021. "Does corporate internationalization affect corporate social responsibility? Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).
    55. John Child & Suzana B. Rodrigues, 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Firms: A Case for Theoretical Extension?," Management and Organization Review, International Association of Chinese Management Research, vol. 1(3), pages 381-410, November.
    56. Markus Baldauf & Lorenzo Garlappi & Constantine Yannelis & José Scheinkman, 2020. "Does Climate Change Affect Real Estate Prices? Only If You Believe In It," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 33(3), pages 1256-1295.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Liu, Feifei & He, Xinming & Wang, Tao, 2023. "In the name of the family: The effect of CEO clan culture background on firm internationalization," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    2. Li, Wanli & Luo, Dan & Cheng, Teng-Yuan, 2025. "Strategy choices in strategic risk-taking: Does climate risk matter?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    3. Olaboopo, Olakunle & Boamah, Evans O., 2026. "Climate change news risk and advertising spending," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    4. Zhang, Chenyan & Zheng, Wei & Hong, Junjie & Kafouros, Mario, 2022. "The role of government policies in explaining the internationalization of Chinese firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 552-563.
    5. Md Lutfur Rahman & Sudipta Bose, 2025. "Firm-level Climate Vulnerability and Corporate Risk-taking: International Evidence," Working Papers DP-2024-36, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA).
    6. Mo, Yan & Jiang, Huifeng & Chong, Cong, 2025. "Climate risk and corporate charitable donations –evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    7. Utesch-Xiong, Fredrik & Leymann, Gunnar & Lundan, Sarianna M., 2024. "More policy is not always effective policy: How policy coherence affects firm internationalization," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(3).
    8. Zheng, Chen & Sun, Zhiyue, 2025. "Organisation capital: A key asset for mitigating firm-level climate change exposure," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(3).
    9. Hoang, Khanh & Pham, Linh & Ha, Oanh Kieu & Nghiem, Hoa Xuan, 2025. "Firm-level climate change exposure and firm efficiency," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    10. Zhao, Feng & Wang, Jinhai & Chen, Qian, 2025. "Climate change exposure and corporate strategic aggressiveness: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 26-53.
    11. Sun, Sunny Li & Peng, Mike W. & Lee, Ruby P. & Tan, Weiqiang, 2015. "Institutional open access at home and outward internationalization," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 234-246.
    12. Jiaxin Wang & Jingyi Zhuang & Chao Yan & Kam C. Chan, 2025. "Standing Up or Standing By: Abnormally Hot Temperatures and Corporate Environmental Engagement," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 196(1), pages 93-127, January.
    13. Joonho Shin & Xavier Mendoza & Changbum Choi, 2022. "Do internationalizing business group affiliates perform better after promarket reforms? Evidence from Korean SMEs," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 39(2), pages 805-841, June.
    14. Xing Chen & Fenghua Wen & Jinli Xiao & Gary Gang Tian, 2025. "Weathering the Risk: How Climate Uncertainty Fuels Corporate Fraud," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 201(2), pages 519-547, October.
    15. Ashrafee Hossain & Abdullah‐al Masum & Samir Saadi & Ramzi Benkraiem & Nirmol Das, 2023. "Firm-Level Climate Change Risk and CEO Equity Incentives," Post-Print hal-04434397, HAL.
    16. Ayden, Yuksel & Tatoglu, Ekrem & Glaister, Keith W. & Demirbag, Mehmet, 2021. "Exploring the internationalization strategies of Turkish multinationals: A multi-perspective analysis," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(3).
    17. Kang, Yuanfei & Scott-Kennel, Joanna & Battisti, Martina & Deakins, David, 2021. "Linking inward/outward FDI and exploitation/exploration strategies: Development of a framework for SMEs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(3).
    18. Weilei (Stone) Shi & Sunny Li Sun & Daying Yan & Zhu Zhu, 2017. "Institutional fragility and outward foreign direct investment from China," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(4), pages 452-476, May.
    19. Fu, Yanan & Wu, Xiaobo & Wang, Zhen, 2024. "Internationalization rhythm and innovation performance: The effects of internationalization speed, organizational slack, and competitive intensity," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(4).
    20. Xu, Kai & Hitt, Michael A. & Brock, David & Pisano, Vincenzo & Huang, Lulu S.R., 2021. "Country institutional environments and international strategy: A review and analysis of the research," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(1).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:66:y:2026:i:1:p:695-721. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.