macroeconomic uncertainty

idiosyncratic shocks

savings

panel data

GMM

system GMM estimator

time series

ARCH/GARCH models

E32

G31

M31

The article aims to verify the impact of macroeconomic uncertainty and idiosyncratic shocks on corporate savings and the cash holdings of companies in Poland. The analysis is based on an unbalanced panel data for companies with at least 10 workers for the 1995–2012 period, as provided by Poland’s Central Statistical Office (GUS) in its GUS F-02 reports. To verify the impact of macroeconomic uncertainty on savings, models were estimated using the GMM estimator with HAC, and the influence of idiosyncratic shocks on corporate savings was identified with use of a robust system GMM estimator. The study shows that Polish companies tend to adapt their savings and cash resources to the level of macroeconomic uncertainty. The findings also indicate that companies maintain a security buffer in the form of accumulated savings as a precaution for fear of idiosyncratic shocks.