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Determinants of the Strength of Strategic Adjustments in Farm Capital Structure

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2015

Cesar L. Escalante
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Peter J. Barry
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL

Abstract

This study employs correlation relationships to measure the strength of trade-offs between business and financial risks as a representation of the strategic capital adjustment process. Under different business risk measures based on varying lengths of historical farm income data, results suggest that farmers tend to adopt a myopic perspective when contemplating risk-balancing plans. Cross-sectional regression results for two-time period models covering the decade of the 1980s and 1990s yielded important implications. The liquidity-constrained environment of the 1980s emphasizes the combination of risk-balancing plans, specialization, and market revenue-enhancing strategies. In the 1990s, risk balancing becomes compatible with risk-reducing crop diversification and insurance protection plans.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2003

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