Liquidity Management and Financial Performance Across Pandemic Phases: Evidence from Listed Manufacturing Firms in Tanzania
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Abstract
Purpose: This study examines whether the association between liquidity management and financial performance differs across pre-pandemic, pandemic, and post-pandemic periods.
Design/Methodology: Quarterly data from seven manufacturing firms listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (2018–2023) were analyzed using fixed-effects interaction models with firm-clustered and Webb-bootstrap inference.
Findings: The Quick Ratio (QR)–financial performance association varied across pandemic phases, while no comparable evidence emerged for the Current Ratio (CR). The QR pattern remained under calendar-time controls but weakened after winsorization and was not reproduced by alternative liquidity measures or first-difference analysis. Thus, the evidence is specification-sensitive rather than conclusive.
Practical Implications: Liquidity indicators should be interpreted alongside asset composition, operating requirements, and economic conditions rather than as uniform targets.
Originality: The study provides a phase-sensitive application of Trade-Off Theory by showing that liquidity–performance relationships may vary across economic conditions and liquidity measures.
Article Details
Copyright (c) 2026 Abraham Charles Nathanael, Dr. Alex Reuben Kira, Dr. Anastasia Njiku
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The data supporting the findings of this study were compiled from publicly available audited quarterly and annual financial reports of manufacturing firms listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE). The compiled dataset used for the analysis is available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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