Rating agencies are expected to be concerned about their long-term reputation because if they lose the trust of investors their ratings would lose credibility and value. We expect that there is less effective monitoring and hence more opportunities for ratings shopping within speculative grades...

Previous research suggests that firms substitute stock repurchases for dividend increases in response to higher cash flow volatility and/or higher tax rates on dividends relative to capital gains. However, when we separately examine repurchase decisions by dividend and non-dividend paying firms,...

Economic retardation in resource rich economies continues to elicit concerns among economists and development experts. This retardation has been linked to resource endowments and the neglect for institutions of governance in resource rich economies. This paper investigates the effects of...

In this paper, we examine the governance of a Chinese state owned enterprise (SOE) and highlight the accounting environment in the People's Republic of China. We look at the cultural and operational aspect of the Qingtongxia Aluminum Smelter Corporation and try to shed light on the role of...

In our study, we examine the association between hedge fund activism and a target firm's corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities and whether activists can promote socially responsible investments while upholding shareholders' interests. Using different matched samples, we find a strong...

Previous research shows that the stock market positively values firms whose motivation is to clearly enhance productivity through streamlining their assets as part of a restructuring campaign. In this study, we examine 47 firms that voluntarily disclosed asset write-down information in either...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of the Enron scandal, Arthur Andersen's demise and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on audit fees. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses empirical methodology (univariate and multivariate). Findings – Audit fees and the Big-4...