Does corporate social responsibility matter to management forecast precision? Evidence from China

This article investigates whether socially responsible companies differ from other firms in the quality of earnings forecasts issued by management. Specifically, using 5192 earnings forecast observations of 669 Chinese listed companies from 2010 to 2016, we examine whether companies that perform better in corporate social responsibility (CSR) still provide higher-precision management earnings forecasts compared with companies with poor CSR performance, thereby presenting an image of transparent and accountable disclosures. Through empirical research, this paper finds that CSR is positively associated with management forecast precision. This result is robust to using alternative measures of CSR, considering mandatory disclosure sample and voluntary disclosure sample, and controlling for potential endogeneity concern by adopting the instrumental variable method. Furthermore, we find the relationship between CSR and management forecast precision is stronger in non-state-owned firms. Our findings suggest that socially responsible companies will comply with higher ethical standards and hence maintain their well-established social reputation by disclosing high-quality earnings forecasts, which lends support to the transparent forecast hypothesis. This paper enriches the existing studies regarding the economic consequences of CSR and adds empirical evidence from emerging markets

The effect of the revision of intangible assets accounting standards on enterprise technology innovation

Against the institutional background of building an innovative country, this article constructs the influence mechanism of the accounting standards for intangible assets for enterprise technology innovation. We select panel data from the Shanghai Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange from 2002 to 2015. We focus on the two dimensions of innovation input and innovation output and use Poisson regression, negative binomial regression, zero expansion regression, and other methods to examine the effects of the revision of the intangible assets accounting standards on enterprise technology innovation. Our research reveals the following: (1) In general, the revision of the intangible assets accounting standards can promote enterprises’ technological innovation activities; (2) This effect is heterogeneous by ownership: before the revision of accounting standards for intangible assets, state-owned enterprises had more innovation input than non-state-owned enterprises, but the innovation output of nonstate-owned enterprises has become greater than that of stateowned enterprises even though the policy only significantly improved the innovation output of the latter; and (3) The system lacks a continuous effect. The revision of the intangible assets accounting standards has only a one-year lag effect on the incentive effect of enterprise innovation input activities, mainly because enterprise innovation input has only a one- to two-year lag effect on output. The implementation of this system has not changed the status quo that Chinese patent rights are based on applied short-term technology research and development. Based on the findings, this article proposes some pertinent policy suggestions

Hypokalaemic periodic paralysis in patients presenting with severe limb paralysis at PUMHSW Nawabshah

Objective: To determine the hypokalemic periodic paralysis rate in patients presenting with severe limb paralysis at PUMHSW Nawabshah. Methodology: This descriptive was conducted Medical department of Peoples Medical College & hospital Nawabshah from October 2017 to April 2018. All the patients having age 20-50 years of either gender with severe limb paralysis at Intensive care unit & medical ward of Peoples Medical College Hospital Nawabshah were included. Demographics information was obtained. After clinical examination along with detailed medical history regarding hypokalemic periodic paralysis (HPP) and severe limb paralysis, patients were subjected to relevant investigations especially potassium and x-rays. Data was collected via self-made proforma. Results: Total of 150 patients were studied; their mean age was 33.4±5.69 years.  22(14.7%) study subjects were female and 128(85.3%) were male patients. Hypokalemic periodic paralysis was seen in 77(51.3%) patients, presenting with severe limb paralysis. There was significant impact of age and gender on frequency of Hypokalemic periodic paralysis. Conclusion: Hypokalemic periodic paralysis (HPP) is a significant factor of acute flaccid paralysis, as well as prompt management and early recognition of this condition would give pleasing result and in some cases, it would prevent additional attacks

Exploring the Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Communication through Social Media on Banking Customer E-WOM and Loyalty in Times of Crisis

Previous studies have largely explored corporate social responsibility (CSR) for organizationcentric outcomes to achieve organizational performance, organizational commitment, or organizational citizenship behavior. However, the importance of CSR to achieve customer-centric outcomes is underexplored to date. Contemporary researchers have recently turned their attention toward CSR from the viewpoint of customer-centric outcomes. Therefore, the present study attempts to test the influence of CSR communication on social media and customer loyalty in the banking sector of a developing economy in times of crisis. This study also investigates the mediating effect of electronic word of mouth (E-WOM) with this relationship. The data of the present study were collected from different banking customers using a self-administered questionnaire. The empirical findings of this study validated that the CSR communication of a bank on social media increases customer loyalty, and E-WOM partially mediates this relationship. This study will be helpful for the banking sector to understand the importance of CSR communication to increase customer loyalty, which is very important for every bank in times of crisis

Analyzing the underlying relationship between monetary policy and residential property prices in China

Policymakers and the public express concern regarding the volatility of housing prices due to its potential to increase consumer costs and negatively impact housing affordability. Based on empirical study, it has been seen that the expansion of the real estate sector has a significant impact on the investment in fixed assets by firms. This influence is mostly attributed to the alteration of the transmission of monetary policy. Real estate investment is considered a feasible option because of the significant and rapid appreciation in property prices. The primary objective of this study is to examine the influence of monetary policy on the housing market in China. To conduct the current study, macroeconomic data from a total of 44 time periods, ranging from the fourth quarter of 2012 to the fourth quarter of 2022, was collected. The findings of our study indicate that in the context of China, an expansion in the money supply has a greater propensity to positively influence the borrowing activities of real estate suppliers and clients, as opposed to the supply of properties themselves. The housing market can be influenced by governmental actions such as adjustments to the money supply and interest rates. While scholars have extensively examined the subject matter, the housing market in China remains relatively under-researched in terms of its susceptibility to government macroeconomic policies. Moreover, the current study offers a comprehensive overview of the prevailing challenges encountered by the residential property market in China, emphasizing the significance of macroeconomic policies within this particular context

Impact of Renewable Energy on Economic Growth and CO2 Emissions—Evidence from BRICS Countries

The global focus on the use of renewable energy resources was mainly reignited by the signing of the Kyoto Protocol Agreement in 1997. Since then, the world has seen a great deal of progress in terms of the production and consumption of renewable energy. This in turn is rapidly powering economic growth and social development around the globe. Contrary to popular belief, the use of renewable energy is not limited to developed countries only. The developing countries are also rapidly endorsing renewable energy as a vital engine of economic growth and societal development. In this regard, even though renewable energy production and consumption are in their infancy in BRICS, these countries are taking concrete steps towards the development of renewable energy resources. The results of previous studies have indicated that with an increase in the GDP of a country its carbon footprint also tends to increase; the Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) countries are no exception in this regard. One of the main challenges in research related to measuring the contribution of renewable energy towards economic growth is the use of a singular model or techniques that may not be appropriate for the generalization of the results. This study intends to overcome this challenge by application of multiple econometric-based models which include the “Cross Dependency” test, the unit root test, and “CIPS” (cross-sectional augmented IPS). Besides these the second generation, stochastic models based upon econometrics, such as the DOLS test (dynamic ordinary least square) and the FMOLS (fully modified ordinary least square) are also applied for verification of the contribution of renewable energy towards the economic growth of the BRICS countries. The novelty of the study mainly stems from fact that these models are seldom applied in tandem and especially in the BRICS countries. The results of the study indicate that the existence of the bi-directional relationship between the use of renewable energy and economic growth is mainly indicated by the increase in GDP, thus lending support to the feedback hypothesis. Moreover, the conservation hypothesis was proven by the existence of a unidirectional causality relationship between the use of renewable energy and CO2 emissions. Alongside these, the study also included sensitivity analysis to gauge the impact of the growth of GDP on the CO2 emissions of BRICS countries, and regression analysis was performed to create an EKC curve which was used to gauge not only the sensitivity but also to help in highlighting the impact of using renewable energy in controlling and reducing CO2 emissions, thus proving the EKC theory. Thus, it can be deduced that increase in CO2 emissions is of major concern for the BRICS countries, which has led them to increase the production of renewable energy. Based upon the findings of the present study it is recommended that policymakers should encourage the use of renewable energy by offering incentives in financial terms, such as interest-free or low-interest loans, subsidies and feed-in tariff

How artificial intelligence changes the future of accounting industry

Purpose: The main theme of the study relates to the assessment of the impact of artificial intelligence on accounting professionals, especially the upcoming generation of an accountant. The study aims to assess the effects of the introduction of AI-based systems in the field of accounting and answer the question of how it has changed the world of accounting professionals and to forward relevant suggestions to policymakers. Design/Approach/Methodology: The study consists of the results of qualitative document analysis on the topic of artificial intelligence in the accounting industry. Findings: The research concludes that the serious concerns amongst the practicing accountant in the present-day world can be replaced by an Artificial Intelligence-based automated system. To avoid this fate, the accountants need not only to adapt to the use of information technology but also need to adapt to the ever-changing business environment. Practical Implication: It has been recommended that to enhance the performance and effectiveness of accounting functions the accountants and accounting firms should keep abreast of continuous improvements in artificial intelligence in their field, which will eventually lead to a reduction in accounting costs to the firm along with adding value to the accounting industry by shifting the focus of accountants to data-driven and analytics-based decision from existing monotonous tasks. Originality/Value: The study is original and it adds to scholarly debate on how the technology revolution changes the future of the accounting industry.peer-reviewe

Bubble identification in the emerging economy fuel price series: : Evidence from a generalized sup augmented Dickey–Fuller test

n the recent past, the world in general and Pakistan in particular faced a drastic fuel price change, affecting the economic productivity of the country. This has drawn the attention of empirical researchers to analyze the abrupt change in fuel prices. This study takes a lead and investigates for the first time, in the literature related to Pakistan, the presence of multiple fuel price bubbles, with the purpose of knowing if the price driver is due to demand or it is exuberant consumer behavior that prevails and contributes to a sudden boom in fuel price series. The empirical analysis is performed through a recently proposed state-of-the-art generalized sup ADF (GSADF) approach on six commonly used fuel price series, namely, LDO (light diesel oil), HSD (high-speed diesel), petrol, natural gas, kerosene, and MS (motor spirit). The bubble analysis for each of the six fuel price series is based on monthly data from July 2005 to August 2020. The findings provide evidence of the existence of multiple bubbles in all series considered. Specifically, four bubbles are detected in each of the kerosene and natural gas price series, whereas three bubbles are noted in each of the HSD, LDO, petrol and MS price series. The maximum duration of occurrence of bubbles is of 12 months for kerosene. The date-stamping of the bubbles shows that the financial crisis of 2008 contributed to the emergence of bubbles that pushed oil prices upward and caused a depreciation in the national currency.Peer reviewe

Does Corporate Social Responsibility Mediate the Relation between Boardroom Gender Diversity and Firm Performance of Chinese Listed Companies?

Although the relationship between board gender diversity and a firm’s financial performance has been investigated before, the current study provides a valuable contribution by exploring the complex phenomenon of the mediating impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance on a firm’s financial performance. The current study aims to explore whether corporate social responsibility (represented by the proxy variable of CSR reporting) mediates the relationship between boardroom gender diversity and firm performance. We use the pooled ordinary least square (OLS) regression to examine the above relationship by using data from 2008 to 2015. To control the likelihood of endogeneity we also use one-year lagged and two-stage least square (2SLS) regression models. Our results show that boardroom gender diversity is significant, positively correlated with firm performance, and CSR fully mediates the relationship between boardroom gender diversity and firm performance. In addition, four control variables (independent director, Chief executive officer (CEO power), board member meeting frequency, Big4, and leverage) have some influence on firm performance. These findings hold for a set of robustness tests. Our findings have the implication for the investors and regulators. For investors, our results show that the existence of female directors on the board can improve the firm performance. For regulators, our results advise the worldwide policy maker to give the importance to boardroom gender diversity. The paper contributes to the existing studies, by pioneering the investigations of the mediating role of CSR in the relation between boardroom gender diversity and firm performance in Chinese context