Futures Trading and Corporate Financialization: A Quasi‐Natural Experiment From the Launch of China's Crude Oil Futures
研究中国原油期货上市对能源依赖型企业金融化的影响，发现期货交易通过增强企业风险管理能力，降低了企业持有金融资产的预防性动机，尤其对国企和竞争压力大的企业效果更明显。
ABSTRACT This study examines the impact of China's crude oil futures trading on corporate decision‐making at the firm level. By analyzing Chinese listed companies spanning from 2010 to 2022, we identify a significant negative causality of China's crude oil futures trading on the degree of financialization in energy‐dependent enterprises. Mechanism analysis further demonstrates that China's crude oil futures trading substantially strengthens corporate risk management capacity, thereby reducing precautionary motivations for financial asset holdings. Specifically, energy‐dependent firms exhibit a marked propensity to reallocate short‐term liquidity from financial investments to crude oil futures positions. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the impact of China's crude oil futures on the financialization level of energy‐dependent firms is more pronounced among state‐owned enterprises and firms facing heightened competitive pressures. This paper offers micro‐level insights into the relationship between commodity futures trading and corporate decision‐making, emphasizing the significance of financial innovation in supporting China's real economy development.