Supply Chain Disruptions: Firm, Competitor, Supplier, and Customer Impact

This study expands the work on contagion effects caused by supply chain disruptions beyond the impacted firm and competitors to its customers and suppliers. Using hand-collected data, we analyze the news announcements to determine those that resulted in disruptions in supply, demand, production, inventory, distribution, or transportation at one or more stages of a supply chain across different types of disruptions and across six market segments. Using event study methodology and regression analysis, we find statistically significant negative share price responses to announcement of supply chain disruptions for the affected firm and its competitors, but not for consumer and supplier firms. Competitors in more concentrated industries, with higher growth prospects, or with higher debt ratios, are more impacted by disruptions by peer firms. Customers firms in less competitive industries, who exhibit higher risk, or have overall lower sales react more negatively to disruption announcements.