Corporate-Debt Overhang and Macroeconomic Expectations
解释企业债务积压如何影响宏观经济：高债务水平下，投资回报低时债务积压会抑制投资，导致多重预期均衡，经济活跃度由“动物精神”决定。
One way in which corporate financial structure affects macroeconomic performance is by creating debt overhang. Debt overhang occurs when existing debt deters new investment because the benefits from new investment will go to the existing creditors, not to the new investors. If the economy is booming, debt overhang will not bind because the returns to investing are high. If the economy is stagnant, debt overhang will bind because the returns to investing are low. As a result, high levels of debt can create multiple expectational equilibria in which 'animal spirits' determine economy activity. Copyright 1995 by American Economic Association.