We examine the economic determinants of short-sale supply, and its consequences for future stock returns. Lendable supply increases with expected borrowing costs and decreases with financial statement constructs that indicate overvaluation. Although rising loan fees help ease supply, we find...

This paper provides an overview of current government schemes promoting corporate reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and analyses their main building blocks. It describes the drivers and challenges for governments, companies and investors in dealing with GHG reporting and includes 4...

We analyze the main forces affecting financial system pro-cyclicality (the fact that developments in the financial sector can amplify business cycle fluctuations). We first review some major structural developments in financial markets that may influence pro-cyclicality and that have been...

In view of the economic significance of extractive industries, the special accounting issues raised, the wide range of accounting figures that can be obtained, and the numerous calls over many years for standardization, there has been less regulation of their accounting than might have been...

Using survey data from a sample of senior investment professionals from mainstream (i.e. not SRI funds) investment organizations we provide insights into why and how investors use reported environmental, social and governance (ESG) information. Relevance to investment performance is the most...

We use a unique dataset to examine the link between ESG disclosure and quality through a cross-country comparison of disclosure requirements and stewardship codes. We find a strong relationship between the extent of ESG disclosure and the quality of a firm's disclosure. Furthermore, we find that...

In this paper, we examine international differences in the effect of management forecasts (which we use to proxy for voluntary disclosure) on the cost of equity capital (COC) across 31 countries. We find that the issuance of management forecasts is associated with a lower COC worldwide, but the...

This paper examines the state of business research in the Nordic countries over the period 2005-2015. Using publication data from the leading peer-reviewed business and economics journals, we analyze Nordic research output across countries, disciplines, and academic institutions. Our results...

Hewlett-Packard Co (HP) executives are accused of having engaged in corruption by paying $8 million in bribes in 2003 to win a contract with the Russian general prosecutor's office. Ironically, this is the authority whose responsibility it is to fight corruption in Russia. German and Russian...

We examine international differences in the effect of management forecasts (which we use to proxy for voluntary disclosure) on the cost of equity capital (COC) across 31 countries. We find that the issuance of management forecasts is associated with a lower COC worldwide but that the effect of...