Spillover effects within supply chains: Evidence from Chinese‐listed firms

Abstract There is increasing attention on information transfers along supply chain partners for firm (extreme) events. This growing literature finds spillover effects following certain types of firm events. Using data from credit rating actions of Chinese‐listed firms over the period between March 2007 and May 2020, we examine the spillover effects of supply chains by focusing on the market reactions of event firms to the action announcements. We find strong evidence of spillover effects driven by the market reactions of event firms, which are enhanced through information diffusion channels as supply chain partners receive more investor attention. Moreover, the effects are stronger when event firms' market reactions are negative, event firms are non‐stated‐owned, the industry concentration of event firms is higher, or the supplier‐customer business relationship is closer. Overall, these findings highlight the role of investor attention and network characteristics in supply chain spillovers.