IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/econom/v76y2009i301p108-131.html

Macroeconomic Instability and Business Exit: Determinants of Failures and Acquisitions of UK Firms

Author

Listed:
  • A. BHATTACHARJEE
  • C. HIGSON
  • S. HOLLY
  • P. KATTUMAN

Abstract

We study the impact of the macroeconomic environment on business exit in a world where acquisition and bankruptcy are co‐determined. We estimate competing risk hazard regression models using data on UK quoted firms spanning a 38‐year period that witnessed several business cycles. We find that the processes determining bankruptcies and acquisitions depend on the macroeconomic environment. In particular, macroeconomic instability has opposing effects on bankruptcy hazard and acquisition hazard, raising the former and lowering the latter. While bankruptcy hazard is counter‐cyclical and acquisition hazard pro‐cyclical, the US business cycle is a better predictor than the UK cycle itself.

Suggested Citation

  • A. Bhattacharjee & C. Higson & S. Holly & P. Kattuman, 2009. "Macroeconomic Instability and Business Exit: Determinants of Failures and Acquisitions of UK Firms," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 76(301), pages 108-131, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:econom:v:76:y:2009:i:301:p:108-131
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0335.2007.00662.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0335.2007.00662.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1468-0335.2007.00662.x?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. Martha A. Schary, 1991. "The Probability of Exit," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 22(3), pages 339-353, Autumn.
    2. A. Bhattacharjee & Higson, C. & Holly, S. & Kattuman, P., 2002. "Macro Economic Instability and Business Exit: Determinants of Failures and Acquisitions of Large UK Firms," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 0206, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    3. Richard Ericson & Ariel Pakes, 1995. "Markov-Perfect Industry Dynamics: A Framework for Empirical Work," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 62(1), pages 53-82.
    4. Machin, Stephen & Van Reenen, John, 1993. "Profit Margins and the Business Cycle: Evidence from UK Manufacturing Firms," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(1), pages 29-50, March.
    5. Bernanke, Ben & Gertler, Mark, 1989. "Agency Costs, Net Worth, and Business Fluctuations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(1), pages 14-31, March.
    6. Goudie, A W & Meeks, G, 1991. "The Exchange Rate and Company Failure in a Macro-Micro Model of the UK Company Sector," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 101(406), pages 444-457, May.
    7. Thomas Cooley & Vincenzo Quadrini, 2006. "Monetary policy and the financial decisions of firms," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 27(1), pages 243-270, January.
    8. Wadhwani, Sushil B, 1986. "Inflation, Bankruptcy, Default Premia and the Stock Market," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 96(381), pages 120-138, March.
    9. Jia Liu, 2004. "Macroeconomic determinants of corporate failures: evidence from the UK," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(9), pages 939-945.
    10. Boyan Jovanovic & Peter L. Rousseau, 2002. "The Q-Theory of Mergers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(2), pages 198-204, May.
    11. repec:bla:econom:v:71:y:2004:i:281:p:299-318 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Bhattacharjee, Arnab, 2004. "Estimation in hazard regression models under ordered departures from proportionality," Computational Statistics & Data Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 517-536, October.
    13. Everett, Jim & Watson, John, 1998. "Small Business Failure and External Risk Factors," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 371-390, December.
    14. Young, Garry, 1995. "Company Liquidations, Interest Rates and Debt," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, University of Manchester, vol. 63(0), pages 57-69, Suppl..
    15. Bhattacharjee, A. & Samarjit Das, 2002. "Testing Proportionality in Duration Models with Respect to Continuous Covariates," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 0220, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    16. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 2003. "Stock market driven acquisitions," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(3), pages 295-311, December.
    17. Bernanke, Ben & Gertler, Mark & Gilchrist, Simon, 1996. "The Financial Accelerator and the Flight to Quality," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 78(1), pages 1-15, February.
    18. Boyan Jovanovic & Peter L. Rousseau, 2001. "Mergers and Technological Change: 1885-1998," Vanderbilt University Department of Economics Working Papers 0116, Vanderbilt University Department of Economics.
    19. Richard Disney & Jonathan Haskel & Ylva Heden, 2003. "Entry, Exit and Establishment Survival in UK Manufacturing," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1), pages 91-112, March.
    20. Jovanovic, Boyan, 1982. "Selection and the Evolution of Industry," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 50(3), pages 649-670, May.
    21. Richard E. Caves, 1998. "Industrial Organization and New Findings on the Turnover and Mobility of Firms," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(4), pages 1947-1982, December.
    22. repec:bla:jindec:v:45:y:1997:i:2:p:171-89 is not listed on IDEAS
    23. David C. Wheelock & Paul W. Wilson, 2000. "Why do Banks Disappear? The Determinants of U.S. Bank Failures and Acquisitions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 82(1), pages 127-138, February.
    24. Clarke, Roger & Ioannidis, Christos, 1996. "On the relationship between aggregate merger activity and the stock market: some further empirical evidence," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 53(3), pages 349-356, December.
    25. Engle, Robert F & Ng, Victor K, 1993. "Measuring and Testing the Impact of News on Volatility," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 48(5), pages 1749-1778, December.
    26. Pakes, Ariel & Ericson, Richard, 1998. "Empirical Implications of Alternative Models of Firm Dynamics," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 79(1), pages 1-45, March.
    27. Murphy, S. A. & Sen, P. K., 1991. "Time-dependent coefficients in a Cox-type regression model," Stochastic Processes and their Applications, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 153-180, October.
    28. Enrique G. Mendoza & Guillermo A. Calvo, 2000. "Capital-Markets Crises and Economic Collapse in Emerging Markets: An Informational-Frictions Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(2), pages 59-64, May.
    29. Higson, C. & Holly, S. & Kattuman, P., 2002. "The cross-sectional dynamics of the US business cycle: 1950-1999," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 26(9-10), pages 1539-1555, August.
    30. Hopenhayn, Hugo A, 1992. "Entry, Exit, and Firm Dynamics in Long Run Equilibrium," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 60(5), pages 1127-1150, September.
    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. Arnab Bhattacharjee & Chris Higson & Sean Holly & Paul Kattuman, 2007. "Macroeconomic Conditions and Business Exit: Determinants of Failures and Acquisitions of UK Firms," CDMA Working Paper Series 200713, Centre for Dynamic Macroeconomic Analysis.
    2. Guidi, Francesco & Solomon, Edna & Trushin, Eshref & Ugur, Mehmet, 2015. "Inverted-U relationship between innovation and survival: Evidence from firm-level UK data," EconStor Preprints 110896, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    3. Bhattacharjee, Arnab & Han, Jie, 2014. "Financial distress of Chinese firms: Microeconomic, macroeconomic and institutional influences," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 244-262.
    4. Ugur, Mehmet & Trushin, Eshref & Solomon, Edna, 2016. "Inverted-U relationship between R&D intensity and survival: Evidence on scale and complementarity effects in UK data," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(7), pages 1474-1492.
    5. Marco Mariani & Elena Pirani & Elena Radicchi, 2013. "La sopravvivenza delle imprese negli anni della crisi: prime evidenze empiriche dalla Toscana," ECONOMIA E POLITICA INDUSTRIALE, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2013(1), pages 25-52.
    6. Sean Holly & Emiliano Santoro, 2007. "Financial Fragility, Heterogeneous Firms and the Cross Section of the Business Cycle," Money Macro and Finance (MMF) Research Group Conference 2006 96, Money Macro and Finance Research Group.
    7. James Bergin & Dan Bernhardt, 2008. "Industry dynamics with stochastic demand," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 39(1), pages 41-68, March.
    8. Bhattacharjee, A. & Higson, C. & Holly, S. & Kattuman, P., 2004. "Business Failure in UK and US Quoted Firms: Impact of Macroeconomic Instability and the Role of Legal Institutions," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 0420, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    9. Renáta Kosová & Francine Lafontaine, 2010. "Survival And Growth In Retail And Service Industries: Evidence From Franchised Chains," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(3), pages 542-578, September.
    10. Priscila Ferreira & George Saridakis, 2017. "Firm Shutdown During the Financial and the Sovereign Debt Crises: Empirical Evidence from Portugal," International Journal of the Economics of Business, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(2), pages 153-179, May.
    11. Bhattacharjee Arnab & Higson Christopher & Holly Sean & Kattuman Paul, 2009. "Macroeconomic Instability and Corporate Failure: The Role of the Legal System," Review of Law & Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 5(1), pages 1-32, January.
    12. Alexander Coad, 2007. "Firm Growth: A Survey," Papers on Economics and Evolution 2007-03, Philipps University Marburg, Department of Geography.
    13. Nicolas Berman & Vincent Rebeyrol & Vincent Vicard, 2019. "Demand Learning and Firm Dynamics: Evidence from Exporters," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 101(1), pages 91-106, March.
    14. Lucia Foster & John Haltiwanger & Chad Syverson, 2016. "The Slow Growth of New Plants: Learning about Demand?," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 83(329), pages 91-129, January.
    15. Viktoria Kocsis & Victoria Shestalova & Henry van der Wiel & Nick Zubanov & Ruslan Lukach & Bert Minne, 2009. "Relation entry, exit and productivity: an overview of recent theoretical and empirical literature," CPB Document 180, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    16. Giovanni Dosi & Emanuele Pugliese & Pietro Santoleri, 2017. "Growth and survival of the `fitter'? Evidence from US new-born firms," LEM Papers Series 2017/06, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    17. Laincz, Christopher A., 2005. "Market structure and endogenous productivity growth: how do R&D subsidies affect market structure?," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 29(1-2), pages 187-223, January.
    18. Rahaman, Mohammad M., 2014. "Do managerial behaviors trigger firm exit? The case of hyperactive bidders," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 54(1), pages 92-110.

    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:econom:v:76:y:2009:i:301:p:108-131. 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/lsepsuk.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.