Monetary Policy, Corporate Finance and Investment

In response to a change in interest rates, younger firms not paying dividends adjust both their capital expenditure and borrowing significantly more than older firms paying dividends. The reason is that the debt of younger non-dividend payers is far more sensitive to fluctuations in collateral values, which are significantly affected by monetary policy. The results are robust to a wide range of possible confounding factors. Other channels, including movements in interest payments, product demand, profitability and mark-ups, are also significant but seem unlikely to explain the heterogeneity in the response of capital expenditure. Our findings suggest that these types of financial frictions play an important role in the transmission of monetary policy. (JEL: E22, E32, E52.)

Keywords: monetary policy, investment, firm debt, financial accelerator, collateral, financial frictions.