Does U.S. CEO connectedness in China matter? Evidence from Chinese import penetration

I study whether U.S. CEOs well connected in China better capture investment opportunities from China. I find that Chinese connected CEOs realize larger sales from China, better announcement returns of investments in China, greater operating performance, and more rewards in the labor market when investment opportunities from China increase, especially for CEOs’ connections with political officers in China. These relations are stronger for firms that lack relevant information about Chinese environment in the boardroom. My results are robust to various controls for managerial skill and regulatory reforms in China as well as tests for endogeneity.