Disclosure measurement in the empirical accounting literature: A review article

This is the first study to provide an extensive and critical review of different techniques used in the empirical accounting literature to measure disclosure. The purpose is to help future researchers to identify exemplars and to select suitable techniques or to develop their own techniques. It also provides in depth discussion of current measurement issues related to disclosure and identifies gaps in the current literature which future research may aim to cover

Economic implications of corporate financial reporting in brazilian and european financial markets

The main objective of this study is to determine how the people involved in the accounting process consider the role of accounting information in an economic environment where capital markets play a major role. The study is also aimed at determining whether International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) will help fulfill this role. To this end, we compare the perceptions of financial officers, financial analysts and auditors, using Europe as a proxy for a highly developed capital market environment and Brazil as a proxy for a less developed capital market environmentEconomic implications ; corporate financial reporting ; brazil ; europe ; financial markets

The role of accounting in the German financial system

This chapter analyzes the role of financial accounting in the German financial system. It starts from the common perception that German accounting is rather "uninformative". This characterization is appropriate from the perspective of an arm´s length or outside investor and when confined to the financial statements per se. But it is no longer accurate when a broader perspective is adopted. The German accounting system exhibits several arrangements that privately communicate information to insiders, notably the supervisory board. Due to these features, the key financing and contracting parties seem reasonably well informed. The same cannot be said about outside investors relying primarily on public disclosure. A descriptive analysis of the main elements of the Germany system and a survey of extant empirical accounting research generally support these arguments

Look at Me Now: What Attracts U.S. Shareholders?

This paper investigates the underlying determinants of home bias using a comprehensive data set on U.S. investors' aggregate holdings of every foreign stock. Among those foreign stocks that are not listed on U.S. exchanges, which account for more than 96 percent of our usable data sample, we find that U.S. investors prefer firms with characteristics associated with greater information transparency, such as stronger home-country accounting standards. We document that a U.S. cross-listing is economically important, as U.S. ownership of a foreign firm roughly doubles upon cross-listing in the United States. We explore the cross-sectional variation in this "cross-listing effect" and find that the increase in U.S. investment is greatest for firms that are from weak accounting backgrounds and are otherwise informationally opaque, suggesting that the key effect of cross-listing is improvements in disclosure that are valued by U.S. investors. By contrast, cross-listing does not increase the appeal of stocks from countries with weak shareholder rights, suggesting that U.S. cross-listing cannot substitute for legal protections in the home country. Nor does the cross-listing effect appear to be driven simply by increased "familiarity"� with the stock or lowered cross-border transactions costs.

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE EXTENT OF CORPORATE COMPLIANCE WITH IFRS. THE CASE OF HUNGARIAN LISTED COMPANIES

Since 2005 European listed companies report their financial figuresbased on IFRSs. This paper investigates whether Hungarian listed companies complywith IFRS disclosure requirements, identifying some factors associated with the levelof compliance. Although the issue of consolidation is not a new topic for Hungarianspecialists, the analysis focuses on the disclosure aspects of consolidation becausepublishing consolidated accounts is considered still a problematic field (Fekete,2008).Findings suggest that corporate size and industry type (more specifically being in theIT&C sector) are statistically associated with the extent of compliance with IFRSdisclosure requirements. This suggest that big, high tech companies comply best toIRFS rules, possibly because they can benefit the most from them.IAS/IFRS, compliance, disclosure, Hungary

Bank Ownership, Firm Value and Firm Capital Structure in Europe

We investigate whether or not banks play a positive role in the ownership structure of European listed firms. We distinguish between banks and other institutional investors as shareholders and examine empirically the relationship between financial institution ownership and the performance of the firms in which they hold equity. Our main finding is that after controlling for the capital structure decision of the firms and the ownership decision of financial institutions in a simultaneous equations model, we find that there is a negative relationship between financial institution ownership and the market value of firms, measured as the Tobin's Q. This is in contradiction with the monitoring hypothesis.Financial institution ownership, Firm value, Capital structure

Mobility of antimony, arsenic and lead at a former mine, Glendinning, Scotland

Elevated concentrations of antimony (Sb), arsenic (As) and lead (Pb) in upland organic-rich soils have resulted from past Sb mining activities at Glendinning, southern Scotland. Transfer of these elements into soil porewaters was linked to the production and leaching of dissolved organic matter and to leaching of spoil material. Sb was predominantly present in truly dissolved (< 3 kDa) forms whilst As and Pb were more commonly associated with large Fe-rich/organic colloids. The distinctive porewater behaviour of Sb accounts for its loss from deeper sections of certain cores and its transport over greater distances down steeper sections of the catchment. Although Sb and As concentrations decreased with increasing distance down a steep gully from the main spoil heap, elevated concentrations (~ 6-8 and 13-20 μg L− 1, respectively) were detected in receiving streamwaters. Thus, only partial attenuation occurs in steeply sloping sections of mining-impacted upland organic-rich soils and so spoil-derived contamination of surface waters may continue over time periods of decades to centuries

Efficient contracting, earnings smoothing and managerial accounting discretion

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the contracting incentives (i.e. bonus plans, debt covenants, political costs hypotheses), and income smoothing can explain accounting choices in an emerging country, Egypt. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses the ordinary least square regression model to examine the relationship between earnings management and reporting objectives. A sample of 438 non-financial firms listed on the Egyptian Exchange over the period 2005-2007 is used. Findings – The paper finds that the contracting objectives explain little of the variations in accounting choices (i.e. discretionary accruals) in the Egyptian context. However, the paper finds that mangers are likely to smooth the reported earnings by managing the accrual component in an attempt to reduce the fluctuation in reported earnings by increasing (decreasing) earnings when earnings are low (high) in attempt to reduce the variability of the reported earnings. Research limitations/implications – The empirical results rely on the ability of earnings management proxies to adequately capture earnings manipulation activities. Practical implications – The findings of the study should be of substantial interest to regulators and policy makers. The results implicitly contribute to the ongoing argument in relation to the optimal flexibility permitted by standard setting and the argument that tightening the accounting standards and mandating International Financial Reporting Standards are likely to improve reporting quality and reduce opportunistic earnings management. The results reveal that many of the weaknesses related to corporate reporting in emerging countries may result from the inadequate enforcement of the law and the weak legal protection of minority shareholders. The results also highlight the crucial role of understanding the reporting incentives, which is mainly shaped by institutional and market forces and the legal environment, in explaining accounting choices. Originality/value – Unlike previous studies that tested an individual objective, this study examines the trade-offs among various reporting objectives in an emerging economy

Pengaruh Struktur Kepemilikan Perusahaan Cross Listed Terhadap Discretionary Accruals Manajemen Laba Model Jones Modifikasi Dengan Legal Sistem Sebagai Variabel Pemoderasi

This study aimed to get empirical evidence about the influence of ownership structure cross listed company on earnings management with the legal system as a moderating variable in the relationship between ownership structure cross listed company and discretionary accruals earnings management model Jones Modified. This research was carried out by using a sample of fifty Asian companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2011-2013. One indicator of corporate performance assessment is the amount of compensation received by the manager, where this can be the motivation of earnings management action. Earnings management measures can be minimized by monitoring the management by using the proportion of ownership by outsiders in the company. For companies listed on foreign capital markets, the legal system of a country believed to be able to strengthen the company\u27s ownership structure influence on earnings management measures for countries with good legal system is able to minimize the likelihood of earnings management action. Earnings management is measured using the modified Jones models with discretionary accruals as a proxy for earnings management. Statistical test equipment used in this research is multiple regression. This study obtained evidence that the structure of institutional ownership cross listed company has a significant negative effect on discretionary accruals earnings management, while the legal system is not able to moderate the influence of ownership structure cross listed company on discretionary accruals earnings management of the company. This occurs because the NYSE stock market is in a country with strong investor protection that the legal system of the Asian company is not able to strengthen the influence of ownership structure on earnings management action