Financial crises and the global supply network: Evidence from multinational enterprises

This paper empirically examines the effects of financial crises on the organization of production of multinational enterprises. We construct a panel of European multinational networks from 2003 through 2015. We compute a multinational-specific shock based on the geographical structure of the network and the extent of the financial crisis in the countries belonging to the network. We document that multinationals facing a larger shock to their network experience lower growth in their number of affiliates and a deterioration in parents’ performance. This adjustment to the financial crisis is accounted for by multinationals with initially more leveraged parents, and it is exacerbated in networks more dependent on external financing. Moreover, initially more leveraged affiliates are more likely to be dropped from a multinational network. These findings lend support to financial frictions shaping multinational activity.