Oil price volatility and corporate cash holding

Since it is believed that oil price movements highly influence economic growth in oil-rich countries, this study examines the influence of oil price volatility on corporate cash holdings and adjustment speed and tests whether firms in the petrochemical industry are affected differ-ently from firms in other industries. This study addresses these research questions using static and dynamic system GMM models on a sample of non-financial firms listed in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries between 2005 and 2019. The results of this study assert that oil price volatility has a significant impact on cash-holding decisions. Specifically, the study displays a positive and significant relationship between oil price volatility and firms' cash holdings. Again, the study discovers that firms adjust towards their target cash-holding level faster during high oil price volatility than during periods of low oil price volatility. Consistent with the trade-off theory, the study unveils that precautionary motive is a crucial factor motivating firms to retain large amounts of cash. The results also showed that firms in the petrochemical industry have a higher cash-holding ratio than firms in other industries. These results support the view that oil price volatility exposes oil-related industries to a higher uncertainty than other industries. Moreover, the findings are robust to an alternative measure of oil price volatility and model specifications.