Trade credit and global value chain: Evidence from cross-country firm-level data

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of joining the global value chain (GVC) on trade credit by using the World Bank Enterprise Survey (WBES) for 55 countries from 2003 to 2019. GVC participation reflects status when a firm is a two-way trader and owns a quality certificate. When exporting, a firm may extend trade credit to its customer (account receivable). When importing, a firm may receive trade credit from its suppliers (account payables). Taking into consideration endogeneity due to reverse causality, our empirical results show the positive effects of GVC participation on the use of trade credit. When a firm participates in GVC, it is more likely to receive trade credit from its suppliers, extend trade credit to its customers, and simultaneously be involved in both types of trade credit. These effects become pronounced for financially-constrained firms, especially for small and medium-sized firms. Our findings suggest that one of the firms’ incentives to participate in the global supply chain is to overcome liquidity shortages.