Government Investment Stimulus and Household Balance Sheet Externalities

By Abhishek Bhardwaj and Saptarshi Mukherjee
Cambridge University Press | January 2025

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022109024000449

Citation

Bhardwaj A, Mukherjee S. Government Investment Stimulus and Household Balance Sheet Externalities. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. 2025;60(3):1457-1499. doi:10.1017/S0022109024000449

Copyright

Cambridge University Press, 2025

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Abstract

We document spillover effects of government policies promoting capital investment on household financial choices and wealth accumulation. Using individual-level data on employment outcomes and household balance sheets, we find that increase in accelerated depreciation limits increases the layoff probability of routine workers and reduces their stock share of liquid wealth relative to non-routine workers. Background risk due to the policy is mitigated when workers have access to generous unemployment insurance benefits. Finally, we show that such portfolio rebalancing adversely impacts investment returns and the wealth accumulation of routine workers.