IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/jecfin/v49y2025i2d10.1007_s12197-025-09718-w.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Economic policy uncertainty and trade credit: international evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Athira A

    (Indian Institute of Management Bangalore)

  • Vishnu K

    (Amrita School of Business, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham)

  • Rajeev A

    (Indian Institute of Management Raipur)

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) on corporate trade credit policies, utilizing an international dataset spanning 20 countries from 1999 to 2019. Our analysis reveals that firms adjust by increasing the provision of trade credit to their customers during periods of heightened EPU. By investigating firm-level dynamics, we identify the influence of inventory composition and financial constraints on trade credit financing in the context of rising EPU. We document that the market devalues firms that offer and accept trade credit during periods of rising EPU. At the country level, institutional characteristics such as governance quality and financial market efficiency significantly moderate the relationship between EPU and trade credit. Our findings highlight the role of trade credit as a mechanism for managing liquidity during uncertain times.

Suggested Citation

  • Athira A & Vishnu K & Rajeev A, 2025. "Economic policy uncertainty and trade credit: international evidence," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 49(2), pages 613-660, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jecfin:v:49:y:2025:i:2:d:10.1007_s12197-025-09718-w
    DOI: 10.1007/s12197-025-09718-w
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s12197-025-09718-w
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s12197-025-09718-w?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. N. Bloom, 2016. "Fluctuations in uncertainty," Voprosy Ekonomiki, NP Voprosy Ekonomiki, issue 4.
    2. Zhang, Rongrong, 2020. "Trade credit, cash holdings, and product market competition," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 132-146.
    3. Nam, Hocheol & Uchida, Konari, 2019. "Accounts payable and firm value: International evidence," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 116-137.
    4. Choi, Woon Gyu & Kim, Yungsan, 2005. "Trade Credit and the Effect of Macro-Financial Shocks: Evidence from U.S. Panel Data," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 40(4), pages 897-925, December.
    5. Petersen, Mitchell A & Rajan, Raghuram G, 1997. "Trade Credit: Theories and Evidence," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 10(3), pages 661-691.
    6. Inessa Love & Rida Zaidi, 2010. "Trade Credit, Bank Credit and Financial Crisis-super-," International Review of Finance, International Review of Finance Ltd., vol. 10(s1), pages 125-147.
    7. Wu, Wenfeng & Rui, Oliver M. & Wu, Chongfeng, 2012. "Trade credit, cash holdings, and financial deepening: Evidence from a transitional economy," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(11), pages 2868-2883.
    8. Frederic Boissay & Nikhil Patel & Hyun Song Shin, 2020. "Trade credit, trade finance, and the Covid-19 Crisis," BIS Bulletins 24, Bank for International Settlements.
    9. Cull, Robert & Xu, Lixin Colin & Zhu, Tian, 2009. "Formal finance and trade credit during China's transition," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 173-192, April.
    10. Jory, Surendranath R. & Khieu, Hinh D. & Ngo, Thanh N. & Phan, Hieu V., 2020. "The influence of economic policy uncertainty on corporate trade credit and firm value," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    11. David Kohn & Fernando Leibovici & Håkon Tretvoll, 2021. "Trade in Commodities and Business Cycle Volatility," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 13(3), pages 173-208, July.
    12. Ferrando, Annalisa & Mulier, Klaas, 2013. "Do firms use the trade credit channel to manage growth?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 3035-3046.
    13. Veysel Avsar & David Hudgins, 2022. "Measuring the effects of economic policy uncertainty on trade credit financing," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(3), pages 249-252, February.
    14. Phan, Hieu V. & Nguyen, Nam H. & Nguyen, Hien T. & Hegde, Shantaram, 2019. "Policy uncertainty and firm cash holdings," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 71-82.
    15. Scott R. Baker & Nicholas Bloom & Steven J. Davis, 2016. "Measuring Economic Policy Uncertainty," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 131(4), pages 1593-1636.
    16. Marc Deloof, 2003. "Does Working Capital Management Affect Profitability of Belgian Firms?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3-4), pages 573-588.
    17. Nguyen, Duc Nguyen & Nguyen, Canh Phuc & Dang, Le Phuong Xuan, 2022. "Uncertainty and corporate default risk: Novel evidence from emerging markets," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    18. Love, Inessa & Preve, Lorenzo A. & Sarria-Allende, Virginia, 2007. "Trade credit and bank credit: Evidence from recent financial crises," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(2), pages 453-469, February.
    19. D'Mello, Ranjan & Toscano, Francesca, 2020. "Economic policy uncertainty and short-term financing: The case of trade credit," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    20. Dbouk, Wassim & Moussawi-Haidar, Lama & Jaber, Mohamad Y., 2020. "The effect of economic uncertainty on inventory and working capital for manufacturing firms," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 230(C).
    21. Niklas Amberg & Tor Jacobson & Erik von Schedvin & Robert Townsend, 2021. "Curbing Shocks to Corporate Liquidity: The Role of Trade Credit," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(1), pages 182-242.
    22. Emilia Garcia‐Appendini & Judit Montoriol‐Garriga, 2020. "Trade Credit Use as Firms Approach Default," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 52(5), pages 1199-1229, August.
    23. Fabbri, Daniela & Klapper, Leora F., 2016. "Bargaining power and trade credit," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 66-80.
    24. Garcia-Appendini, Emilia & Montoriol-Garriga, Judit, 2013. "Firms as liquidity providers: Evidence from the 2007–2008 financial crisis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(1), pages 272-291.
    25. Mitchell A. Petersen, 2009. "Estimating Standard Errors in Finance Panel Data Sets: Comparing Approaches," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 435-480, January.
    26. Carlos A. Molina & Lorenzo A. Preve, 2009. "Trade Receivables Policy of Distressed Firms and Its Effect on the Costs of Financial Distress," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 38(3), pages 663-686, September.
    27. Doan Ngoc Thang & Le Thanh Ha, 2022. "Trade credit and global value chain: Evidence from cross-country firm-level data," International Economics, CEPII research center, issue 171, pages 110-129.
    28. Schwartz, Robert A., 1974. "An Economic Model of Trade Credit," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 9(4), pages 643-657, September.
    29. Marc Deloof, 2003. "Does Working Capital Management Affect Profitability of Belgian Firms?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3‐4), pages 573-588, April.
    30. Carrière-Swallow, Yan & Céspedes, Luis Felipe, 2013. "The impact of uncertainty shocks in emerging economies," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(2), pages 316-325.
    31. Demir, Ender & Ersan, Oguz, 2017. "Economic policy uncertainty and cash holdings: Evidence from BRIC countries," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 189-200.
    32. Enqvist, Julius & Graham, Michael & Nikkinen, Jussi, 2014. "The impact of working capital management on firm profitability in different business cycles: Evidence from Finland," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 36-49.
    33. S. Alex Yang & John R. Birge, 2018. "Trade Credit, Risk Sharing, and Inventory Financing Portfolios," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(8), pages 3667-3689, August.
    34. Casalin, Fabrizio & Pang, Gu & Maioli, Sara & Cao, Ting, 2017. "Inventories and the concentration of suppliers and customers: Evidence from the Chinese manufacturing sector," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 148-159.
    35. Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart & Mastruzzi, Massimo, 2005. "Governance matters IV : governance indicators for 1996-2004," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3630, The World Bank.
    36. Aktas, Nihat & Croci, Ettore & Petmezas, Dimitris, 2015. "Is working capital management value-enhancing? Evidence from firm performance and investments," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 98-113.
    37. Christina Atanasova, 2007. "Access to Institutional Finance and the Use of Trade Credit," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 36(1), pages 49-67, March.
    38. Bougheas, Spiros & Mateut, Simona & Mizen, Paul, 2009. "Corporate trade credit and inventories: New evidence of a trade-off from accounts payable and receivable," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 300-307, February.
    39. Phan, Dinh Hoang Bach & Iyke, Bernard Njindan & Sharma, Susan Sunila & Affandi, Yoga, 2021. "Economic policy uncertainty and financial stability–Is there a relation?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 1018-1029.
    40. Inessa Love & Rida Zaidi, 2010. "Trade Credit, Bank Credit and Financial Crisis," International Review of Finance, International Review of Finance Ltd., vol. 10(1), pages 125-147, March.
    41. Santiago Carbó‐Valverde & Francisco Rodríguez‐Fernández & Gregory F. Udell, 2016. "Trade Credit, the Financial Crisis, and SME Access to Finance," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 48(1), pages 113-143, February.
    42. Emery, Gary W., 1984. "A Pure Financial Explanation for Trade Credit," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 19(3), pages 271-285, September.
    43. Huseyin Gulen & Mihai Ion, 2016. "Editor's Choice Policy Uncertainty and Corporate Investment," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 29(3), pages 523-564.
    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. Abdulla, Yomna & Dang, Viet Anh & Khurshed, Arif, 2020. "Suppliers' listing status and trade credit provision," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    2. Afrifa, Godfred Adjapong & Gyapong, Ernest & Monem, Reza M., 2018. "Product differentiation, market dynamics and the value relevance of trade payables: Evidence from UK listed firms," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 235-253.
    3. Jory, Surendranath R. & Khieu, Hinh D. & Ngo, Thanh N. & Phan, Hieu V., 2020. "The influence of economic policy uncertainty on corporate trade credit and firm value," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    4. Vo, Hong & Phan, Anh & Trinh, Quoc-Dat & Vu, Linh Nhat, 2022. "Does economic policy uncertainty affect trade credit and firm value in Korea? A comparison of chaebol vs. non-chaebol firms," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 474-491.
    5. Huynh, Japan, 2024. "Banking uncertainty and cash conversion cycle," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    6. Quoc Viet Pham & Tran Quang Phuc Pham, 2020. "Does Trade Credit Spur Firm Performance? A Case Study in Vietnam," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(3), pages 215-227.
    7. Cao, Zhangfan & Chen, Steven Xianglong & Lee, Edward, 2022. "Does business strategy influence interfirm financing? Evidence from trade credit," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 495-511.
    8. Altunok, Fatih & Mitchell, Karlyn & Pearce, Douglas K., 2020. "The trade credit channel and monetary policy transmission: Empirical evidence from U.S. panel data," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 226-250.
    9. D'Mello, Ranjan & Toscano, Francesca, 2020. "Economic policy uncertainty and short-term financing: The case of trade credit," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    10. Nieves Lidia Díaz-Díaz & Pedro J. García-Teruel & Pedro Martínez-Solano, 2025. "Trade credit and family control," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 19(8), pages 2529-2568, August.
    11. Srivastava, Jagriti & Gopalakrishnan, Balagopal & Tharyan, Rajesh, 2024. "Product market shock, stakeholder relationships, and trade credit," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(6).
    12. Joye Khoo & Adrian (Wai Kong) Cheung, 2023. "Does skilled labor risk matter to suppliers? Evidence from trade credit," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 58(2), pages 423-447, May.
    13. Afrifa, Godfred Adjapong & Tingbani, Ishmael & Adesina, Oluseyi Oluseun, 2022. "Stochastic frontier modelling of working capital efficiency across Europe," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    14. Dottori, Davide & Micucci, Giacinto & Sigalotti, Laura, 2024. "Trade debts and bank lending in years of crisis," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    15. Khoo, Joye & Cheung, Adrian (Wai Kong), 2025. "Reprint of: The hidden cost of organisation capital: Evidence from trade credit," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 57(1).
    16. Abdulla, Yomna & Dang, Viet Anh & Khurshed, Arif, 2017. "Stock market listing and the use of trade credit: Evidence from public and private firms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 391-410.
    17. Gonçalves, Adalto Barbaceia & Schiozer, Rafael F. & Sheng, Hsia Hua, 2018. "Trade credit and product market power during a financial crisis," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 308-323.
    18. Liu Hong & Tianpeng Zhou, 2024. "Firm-level political risk and the firm’s trade credit extension," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 48(3), pages 857-888, September.
    19. Athira, A. & Ramesh, Vishnu K., 2024. "Economic policy uncertainty and tax avoidance: International evidence," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    20. Zhang, Cheng & Lee, Yun-Chi & Ho, Kung-Cheng & Shen, Xixi, 2023. "Influence of institutional differences on trade credit use during pandemics," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • D8 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty
    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

    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:spr:jecfin:v:49:y:2025:i:2:d:10.1007_s12197-025-09718-w. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.