State ownership and the relationship between investment and cash flow: the case of Vietnamese listed firms

Abstract

The article examines the effect of state ownership on the relationship between investment and cash flow in Vietnam, a small transitional economy. Using a sample of companies listed on Vietnam’s stock exchanges, we find that the investment–cash flow relation for both state-owned and non-state-owned firms is U-shaped. In addition, state-owned companies have higher cash flow sensitivity of investment, which perhaps is due to their socioeconomic and political responsibilities, poor corporate governance, and agency problem. Moreover, the investment of high-growth companies, both with and without state ownership, has lower dependence on internal cash flow. Additionally, low-growth state-owned companies have higher cash flow sensitivity of investment than those without state ownership, suggesting inefficient investment by the former.