Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Faculty & Research
  • Faculty
  • Research
  • Featured Topics
  • Academic Units
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • Faculty & Research→
Publications
Publications
  • February 2017
  • Article
  • Journal of Finance

Resident Networks and Corporate Connections: Evidence from World War II Internment Camps

By: Lauren Cohen, Umit Gurun and Christopher J. Malloy
  • Format:Print
ShareBar

Abstract

We demonstrate that simply by using the ethnic makeup surrounding a firm’s location, we can predict, on average, which trade links are valuable for firms. Using customs and port authority data on the international shipments of all U.S. publicly traded firms, we show that firms are significantly more likely to trade with countries that have a large resident population near their firm headquarters. We use the formation of World War II Japanese Internment Camps to isolate exogenous shocks to local ethnic populations and identify a causal link between local networks and firm trade. We also show that firms are more likely to acquire target firms, and report increased segment sales, in countries to which they are connected. Firms that exploit their local networks also see significant increases in future sales growth and profitability. In sum, our results document a surprisingly large impact of immigrants’ role as economic conduits for firms in their new countries.

Keywords

Information Networks; Trade Links; Firm Behavior; Networks; Geographic Location; Ethnicity; Organizations; Trade

Citation

Cohen, Lauren, Umit Gurun, and Christopher J. Malloy. "Resident Networks and Corporate Connections: Evidence from World War II Internment Camps." Journal of Finance 72, no. 1 (February 2017): 207–248. (Winner of First Prize, the Inaugural Hakan Orbay Research Award, 2015.)
  • Find it at Harvard
  • Read Now

About The Author

Lauren H. Cohen

Finance
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • June 2025
    • Faculty Research

    (Family) Size Matters: Nico Oprée and the Decreasing Power of Family Unity over Time

    By: Lauren Cohen, Octavian Graf Pilati, Dominik V. Eynern and Sophia Pan
    • May 2025
    • Faculty Research

    'Net Zero in Action': Impact Investing at the McKnight Foundation

    By: Lauren Cohen, Christina R. Wing and Sophia Pan
    • May 2025
    • Faculty Research

    The Micro-Family Office: Aamir Rehman

    By: Lauren Cohen and Sophia Pan
More from the Authors
  • (Family) Size Matters: Nico Oprée and the Decreasing Power of Family Unity over Time By: Lauren Cohen, Octavian Graf Pilati, Dominik V. Eynern and Sophia Pan
  • 'Net Zero in Action': Impact Investing at the McKnight Foundation By: Lauren Cohen, Christina R. Wing and Sophia Pan
  • The Micro-Family Office: Aamir Rehman By: Lauren Cohen and Sophia Pan
ǁ
Campus Map
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
→Map & Directions
→More Contact Information
  • Make a Gift
  • Site Map
  • Jobs
  • Harvard University
  • Trademarks
  • Policies
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Accessibility
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College.